838 EEPOET— 1889. 



Girls when reaching maturity must stay in their bedroom, where they 

 have a fireplace of their own. They are not allowed to descend to the 

 floor, and do not sit by the fire of the family. After a while they may 

 leave their room, but only through a hole cut in the floor (the houses 

 standing on piles), through which they must also enter. They are 

 allowed to pick berries, but for a whole year they must not come near 

 the river or the sea. They must not drink more than is absolutely 

 necessary. They must not eat salmon of the season, else they would 

 lose their senses, or their mouths would be transformed into long beaks. 

 They must not eat snow, which is much liked by the Indians, nor must 

 they chew gum. 



Kivdkiutl. — There are the same restrictions regarding the place in 

 which women are confined and regarding the food of girls reaching 

 maturity. The marriage customs are of peculiar interest on account of 

 the transition from maternal to paternal institutions that may be observed 

 here. If a young man wishes to marry a girl, he must send messengers 

 to the girl's father and ask his permission. If the father accepts the 

 suitor, he may demand fifty or more blankets, according to his rank, to 

 be paid at once. He demands double that number to be paid after three 

 months. After this second payment has been made, the young man is 

 allowed to live with his wife in his father-in-law's house. When he goes 

 to live there the young man gives a feast to the whole tribe, without 

 giving away any blankets, and receives from his father-in-law fifty blankets 

 or more. At the same time his father-in-law states when he intends to 

 refund the rest. During the feast, in which the young wife takes part, 

 she tells her father that her husband wishes to have his carvings and 

 dances. Her father is obliged to give them to him, and promises to do so 

 at a future occasion. After three months more the young man pays his 

 father-in-law 100 blankets to gain permission to take his wife to his 

 own home. The blankets which he has given to his father-in-law are 

 repaid by the latter with interest. At the appointed time the woman's 

 father gives a great feast to the whole tribe. He steps forward carrying 

 his copper, the emblem of richness and power, and hands it to his son-in- 

 law, thus giving him his name, carvings, and dances. The young man 

 has to give blankets to every guest attending the feast ; the nobler the 

 guest is, the more blankets he receives. 



The dowry of the bride consists of bracelets made of beaver-toes and 

 copper ; so-called ' button-blankets,' copper-plates, and the gyi'serstal. 

 The last is a heavy board shaped like one of the lids of Indian boxes. 

 Its front is set with sea-otter teeth. It is said to represent the human 

 lower jaw, and I was told that it indicates the right of the husband to 

 command his wife to speak or to be silent as he may desii'e. 



The bride receives her boxes and other household goods from her 

 parents. After the marriage she makes presents of dishes, spoons, trays, 

 and similar objects to the whole tribe in behalf of her husband, in order to 

 show his liberality. If the woman should intend to separate from her 

 husband, and to return to her parents, her father must repay twofold all 

 he has received from his son-in-law. If there should be a child, he has 

 to repay him threefold. This third part becomes the property of the 

 child. Frequently this is only a sham divorce, entered into to give an 

 opportunity to the father-in-law to show his liberality and wealth. As 

 soon as he has paid the husband, the latter repurchases his wife. I was 



