CHIEFS. 27 



before he would be expelled from the society ; no 

 amount of idleness, nor selfishness, entails such 

 a punishment. Superior powers of mind, combined 

 with skill in hunting, raise a few into chiefs, under 

 whose guidance a greater or smaller number of 

 families place themselves ; and a chief is great or 

 little, according to the length of his tail. His 

 clients and he are bound together only by mutual 

 advantage, and may and do separate as inclination 

 prompts. The chief does not assume the power of 

 punishing crimes, but regulates the movements of 

 his band, chooses the hunting-ground, collects pro- 

 visions for the purchase of ammunition, becomes 

 the medium of communication with the traders, 

 and extends his sway by a liberal distribution 

 of tobacco and ammunition among his dependents. 

 At present, the rank of a chief is not fully esta- 

 blished among his own people until it is recognised 

 at the fort to which he resorts. The Company send 

 in annually a number of red coats, ornamented with 

 lace, for presents to the chiefs, which are worn as 

 badges of office on great occasions. The power of 

 a chief varies with his personal character. Some 

 have acquired an almost absolute rule, by attaching 

 to themselves in the first instance an active band 

 of robust young men, and using them to keep in 

 order any refractory person by claiming his wife 

 after the custom of the tribe. It is in vain in 



