Bill McGarvey and the Klamath River Indians (25 pages)

THECALIFORNIANS PAGE 25 VOLUME12/N0. 3 (Me-quin) she had made them sick, and she was the one that could cure them. (<4 A magic power to cure” These doctors are paid in advance for their services, and when they came after her, instead of ' accepting what pay they brought and offered to her, she would talk with the greatest of shrewdness, comment on the case, and demand of them the most valuable articles which she knew they had, and would scheme to get all she could. She seemed to have a magic power to cure, and did cure in most cases, as she had perfect confidence in herself and gave perfect con' fidence to the sick one of her ability to make them well, somewhat on the same principal of the Christian Scientists among the people of today. But for this pay the doctor had to cure the sick person, and if the patient should die within a year from the time the doctor prescribed for them, she is compelled to give back all that was given to her. This doctor seldom had to return her fee, and gathered wealth in abundance and succeeded in her shrewd practice. Taking from her brothers and sisters the entire fortune that her mother and father-had left them, she had power and influence among her people. She tried to make doctors of her three daughters, but they became the most commonest kind. She turned nearly all of her fortune’s wealth over to her son, the Colonel, and. while he did not have the shrewdness of his mother, he managed in the long run, by deaths and otherwise, to get possession of the greater part of the wealth of so many rich relations that he too had power and influence above his people. His walk, manner and very actions were very impressive to anyone that met him. He would never eat in a white man’s house; my. house was the only white man’s house he was ever known to stop in overnight and eat at the table. He was very liberal in his own house, © and the white man has had many meals at © his table. Pec-wan Colonel was born at Pec-wan village, where the Talth lodge is located. Raa but middle-class forever. A fullblooded Klamath Indian, born of wealthy parents but of the middle class, with all of his wealth and influence he could not become a Talth. Therefore he could at all times and on all occasions keep his place; he knew where he could come in, and where to keep back, with perfect ease. He was closely related to the Talth families, and when it came to festivals, he could and did lead them all with more deerskins, silver-pgrey fox skins and other kinds, with enough strings of tutk-tum and cheek to cover the breast of all who danced, besides long and valuable flints, both red and black, and all kinds of dancing fixtures. He always kept a large camp with plenty of provisions, and plenty of women to cook and wait on the crowds; he was very. liberal and fed many. He was mean to his slaves and cared nothing for visiting Indians of other tribes, only his own Klamath people; and to all of these he was closely related to, far up the river, and he visited them as far up as they lived. In the large festivals he could draw on the Pech-iclas, his relatives, for whatever he wanted to keep him at all times in the lead. He had but one wife. She was also of a wealthy family, and when he thought at one time to take another wife, she told him plainly that there would be no two wives for her, that she could and-would go to her father’s home and not return; so he gave up the notion and remained with her. She was a good woman, very kind of disposition and pleasant of manner. She never had any children, and has been dead now for about 12 years. There is a nephew of his named Pec-wan Harry; he married a woman who lived close to the mouth of the river at Wah-kell village. And he is now called Wahkell Harry, ‘and they have quite a family of children; and to him went nearly all of the wealth. He too is a fine-looking man of the same build as Pec-wan Colonel. — Lucy Thompson (Che-na-wah Weitch-ah-wah) the central ground for the lower Klamath Indians, as here close by is where they held the sacred White Deerskin Dance [Ohpure-ah-way], which is a worship of their God. Here for ages past have gathered the wealthiest and most prominent Indians, both men and women, of all the upper and lower Klamath Tribe, including the Hoopa, Smith River and our Indians down the coast as far as Trinidad. White men have visited this famous old store whose names will go down in history, such as General Crook and many other army officers, besides many wealthy businessmen. All of them liked to linger in this beautiful spot where the sun shines warm and the pleasant seabreeze fans it all through the summer months. There is a trail to this place from the north, Crescent City, Reck-woy and other places. This is not a mining country as there are no mines below the mouth of the Trinity, except in the river gravel or in the low bars that have been washed down from the upper Klamath and Trinity Rivers where all the rich goldbearing mining placers are found. These mines were the cause of the old store being a central stopping place for the men in the early days going to and from the mines. In the fall of 1876 I counted upwards of three thousand Indians there at a White Deerskin Dance. There were five different languages spoken among them: the lower Klamath, upper Klamath, Hoopa, Smith River and Mad River. Some of them could speak two and some three, while others could only speak one. So it can be seen that this old Klamath Bluff Store (or Klamath Post Office, as it is now called) has been the scene of many and not a few murders, and this store will be mentioned often in my writing. In about the year 1861, Snider sold the stock of goods to Bill McGarvey, a jolly Irishman. It was Bill McGarvey that named me Lucy, yet he always called me by my Indian name, Che-na-wah. Bill McGarvey kept in stock plenty of whiskey, always in the flat pint bottles, which he sold at a dollar a bottle to the whites and Indians alike. He would only bring out one bottle at a time in selling it to the Indians so thatany time they became quarrelsome he could tell them that it was all gone. Bill McGarvey had many ups and downs in ~ the way of his trading there among them, and I will tell of some of his experiences. r¢¢ A lesson in dealing with the Indians.” Three Indians came to the store one day, bringing with them a fine-looking young Indian girl, and wanted to borrow 30 dollars and leave the girl as security. He

THECALIFORNIANS PAGE 25 VOLUME12/N0. 3 (Me-quin) she had made them sick, and she was the one that could cure them. (<4 A magic power to cure” These doctors are paid in advance for their services, and when they came after her, instead of ' accepting what pay they brought and offered to her, she would talk with the greatest of shrewdness, comment on the case, and demand of them the most valuable articles which she knew they had, and would scheme to get all she could. She seemed to have a magic power to cure, and did cure in most cases, as she had perfect confidence in herself and gave perfect con' fidence to the sick one of her ability to make them well, somewhat on the same principal of the Christian Scientists among the people of today. But for this pay the doctor had to cure the sick person, and if the patient should die within a year from the time the doctor prescribed for them, she is compelled to give back all that was given to her. This doctor seldom had to return her fee, and gathered wealth in abundance and succeeded in her shrewd practice. Taking from her brothers and sisters the entire fortune that her mother and father-had left them, she had power and influence among her people. She tried to make doctors of her three daughters, but they became the most commonest kind. She turned nearly all of her fortune’s wealth over to her son, the Colonel, and. while he did not have the shrewdness of his mother, he managed in the long run, by deaths and otherwise, to get possession of the greater part of the wealth of so many rich relations that he too had power and influence above his people. His walk, manner and very actions were very impressive to anyone that met him. He would never eat in a white man’s house; my. house was the only white man’s house he was ever known to stop in overnight and eat at the table. He was very liberal in his own house, © and the white man has had many meals at © his table. Pec-wan Colonel was born at Pec-wan village, where the Talth lodge is located. Raa but middle-class forever. A fullblooded Klamath Indian, born of wealthy parents but of the middle class, with all of his wealth and influence he could not become a Talth. Therefore he could at all times and on all occasions keep his place; he knew where he could come in, and where to keep back, with perfect ease. He was closely related to the Talth families, and when it came to festivals, he could and did lead them all with more deerskins, silver-pgrey fox skins and other kinds, with enough strings of tutk-tum and cheek to cover the breast of all who danced, besides long and valuable flints, both red and black, and all kinds of dancing fixtures. He always kept a large camp with plenty of provisions, and plenty of women to cook and wait on the crowds; he was very. liberal and fed many. He was mean to his slaves and cared nothing for visiting Indians of other tribes, only his own Klamath people; and to all of these he was closely related to, far up the river, and he visited them as far up as they lived. In the large festivals he could draw on the Pech-iclas, his relatives, for whatever he wanted to keep him at all times in the lead. He had but one wife. She was also of a wealthy family, and when he thought at one time to take another wife, she told him plainly that there would be no two wives for her, that she could

and-would go to her father’s home and not return; so he gave up the notion and remained with her. She was a good woman, very kind of disposition and pleasant of manner. She never had any children, and has been dead now for about 12 years. There is a nephew of his named Pec-wan Harry; he married a woman who lived close to the mouth of the river at Wah-kell village. And he is now called Wahkell Harry, ‘and they have quite a family of children; and to him went nearly all of the wealth. He too is a fine-looking man of the same build as Pec-wan Colonel. — Lucy Thompson (Che-na-wah Weitch-ah-wah) the central ground for the lower Klamath Indians, as here close by is where they held the sacred White Deerskin Dance [Ohpure-ah-way], which is a worship of their God. Here for ages past have gathered the wealthiest and most prominent Indians, both men and women, of all the upper and lower Klamath Tribe, including the Hoopa, Smith River and our Indians down the coast as far as Trinidad. White men have visited this famous old store whose names will go down in history, such as General Crook and many other army officers, besides many wealthy businessmen. All of them liked to linger in this beautiful spot where the sun shines warm and the pleasant seabreeze fans it all through the summer months. There is a trail to this place from the north, Crescent City, Reck-woy and other places. This is not a mining country as there are no mines below the mouth of the Trinity, except in the river gravel or in the low bars that have been washed down from the upper Klamath and Trinity Rivers where all the rich goldbearing mining placers are found. These mines were the cause of the old store being a central stopping place for the men in the early days going to and from the mines. In the fall of 1876 I counted upwards of three thousand Indians there at a White Deerskin Dance. There were five different languages spoken among them: the lower Klamath, upper Klamath, Hoopa, Smith River and Mad River. Some of them could speak two and some three, while others could only speak one. So it can be seen that this old Klamath Bluff Store (or Klamath Post Office, as it is now called) has been the scene of many and not a few murders, and this store will be mentioned often in my writing. In about the year 1861, Snider sold the stock of goods to Bill McGarvey, a jolly Irishman. It was Bill McGarvey that named me Lucy, yet he always called me by my Indian name, Che-na-wah. Bill McGarvey kept in stock plenty of whiskey, always in the flat pint bottles, which he sold at a dollar a bottle to the whites and Indians alike. He would only bring out one bottle at a time in selling it to the Indians so thatany time they became quarrelsome he could tell them that it was all gone. Bill McGarvey had many ups and downs in ~ the way of his trading there among them, and I will tell of some of his experiences. r¢¢ A lesson in dealing with the Indians.” Three Indians came to the store one day, bringing with them a fine-looking young Indian girl, and wanted to borrow 30 dollars and leave the girl as security. He