Mensies' Journal. 



Nimpkish Indians. 87 



ness & seemd anxious to preserve a good understanding on 

 both sides. 



In the afternoon I went with Cap' Vancouver & some 

 of the Officers accompanied by the Chief to the Village 

 called IVhannoc, we found it pleasantly situated, exposed to 

 a Southern Aspect on the slopcing bank of a small creek 

 well shelterd behind by a dense forest of tall Pines. The 

 houses were regularly arranged & from the Creek made a 

 picturesque appearance by the various rude paintings with 

 which their fronts were adornd. On our approach to the 

 landing place in the two Boats, several of the Natives 

 assembled on the Beach to receive us, & conducted us very 

 orderly through every part of the Village, where we observd 

 that the Houses were built much in the same manner as at 

 Nootka, but much neater, & the Inhabitants being of the 

 same Nation differd very little either in their manners or 

 dress from the Nootka Tribe. Several families lived in 

 common under the same roof, but each had their sleeping 

 place divided off 81 screend in with great decency, & with 

 a degree of privacy not attended to in the Nootka habita- 

 tions. The Women were variously employd, some in cul- 

 inary occupations, others w^ere engagd in / Manufacturing 

 of Garments Mats & small Baskets & they did not fail to 

 dun us for presents in every House we came to in a manner 

 which convincd us that they were not unaccustomd to such 

 Visitants. Buttons Beads & other Trinkets were distributed 

 amongst them, & so eagerly solicitous were they for these 

 little articles of ornament that our pockets were soon 

 emptied of them, & tho they were free & unreservd in their 

 manners & conversation, yet none of them would suffer any 

 of our people to offer them any indecent familiarities, which 

 is a modesty in some measure characteristic of their Tribe. 



On coming to an elderly Chief's House we were enter- 

 taind with a song which was by no means unharmonious, the 

 whole group at intervals joind in it, & kept time by beating 

 against planks or any thing near them with the greatest regu- 

 larity, after which the old Chief presented each of us \vith 

 a slip of Sea Otter Skin & sufferd us to depart. In prepar- 

 ing for this vocal entertainment the Natives made such a 

 bustle in arming themselves with Clubs Spears Sticks 

 Paddles &;c for beating time with, that we were at first a 

 little alarmd & had some suspitions of their having hostile 



1702. 



July 20th. 

 »t the anony- 

 mous author of 

 a journal of 

 the Voyage of 

 the Chatbain. 

 (See Meany, 

 K. S. A New 

 Vancouver 

 Journal.) 

 Whan nock, 

 Menzles. 

 Whanneck of 

 the anonymous 

 writer just 

 referred to ; 

 Whulk of 

 recent writers. 



