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Page: of 436
JANUARY—FEBRUARY 1845
deep, its roof was a circle of pine saplings whose butt ends rested firmly
on the upper edge of the excavation, while their upper ends lay across
beams supported by forked oak posts. At the center a gap in the logs
provided a smokehole for the fire.
Around the inside of the excavation, a row of short poles had been
driven into the ground to line and reinforce the earthen wall. The kum
was a comfortable building. The roof was insulated and waterproofed
with layers of brush, grass, pine needles and dirt. The floor was thickly
carpeted with piles of fresh aromatic pine boughs, which were frequently
replaced. Even in the coldest weather one could sleep here without clothing, for in the firepit at the center of the kum a fire burned night and day
during the cold weather.
The fire also served as a calendar during the winter, which was considered to be six months long. In each village one old man was assigned
the task of recording the passage of time by means of six identically sized
pieces of green oak. Each stick measured about three inches long and
represented a single month. Every night the old man used one stick to stir
the fire three times. When the stick had been reduced to a certain predetermined length the month had ended. On the following night the old
man would begin to stir with a new stick.
Although it was used sometimes to accommodate visitors in the winter, the kum was used chiefly as a meeting place. Shortly after Jepe had
been dispatched to the mountains, the elders and members of the council
had gathered here at Wema’s invitation. For two days they had discussed
the stories from Sutter’s Fort. Now, while they waited for Jepe to return,
subchief Walupa prepared the ceremonial pipe for smoking.
He began by taking a few dry leaves of pan, the local tobacco, and
rubbed them between the palms of his hands until they were finely pulverized. Next, he filled the pipe’s soapstone bowl, which had been
carved to hold just enough pan to go once around the circle. He extracted a small live coal carefully from the fire and placed it on top of the
tobacco. After taking two or three puffs, Walupa wiped the foot-long
stem clean with his hand and passed it to his neighbor.
Suddenly the village dogs began to bark and the soft hum of voices
outside the kum grew louder and more excited. “I think he has returned,”
Wema calmly announced. Outside, the people stopped their activities to
watch Jepe enter the village. Ignoring them, the runner jogged toward the
kum, coming at it from the east, for its door faced the rising sun.
Thrusting aside the large slabs of bark which covered the entrance, he
stepped inside. His compact body shone with perspiration in the light of
the fire. He still breathed quickly and heavily, and the strain of his journey showed in his face. Gradually the rhythmic rise and fall of his chest
3