364 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1888. 



Dawson, in a receut magazine article, thus describes a dance which he 

 saw at Skidegate, Queen Charlotte Islands : 



The performers, about twenty in uuuiber, were dressed according to uo uniform 

 plan. * * * Some bad rattles, and added to the din by shaking these furiously at 

 the accentuated parts of tbe song. Five women took part in the dance, standing in 

 front iu a row, and were dressed with some uniformity, several having tbe peculiarly 

 valuable cedar bark or goat's wool shawls made by the Tsimshians. The head dresses 

 of the women were all alike, consisting in each case of a small mask or semblance 

 of a face carved neatly iu wood and inlaid with pearly haliotis shell. * * * * 

 The drum was beaten very regularly with double knocks — thus, turn turn, turn, turn, 

 turn tum—^aud with the sound the dancers kept time iu a sort of chant or song to 

 which words are set, and which swells mto a full chorus or dies away according to 

 the notions of a leader, who stood among the dancers, who, besides marking time, 

 now and then gave a few words of direction or exhortation. ^^ * * To the drum- 

 ming and singing the dancing also keeps time, following it very closely. At every 

 beat a spasmodic twitch passes through the crowd of dancers, who scarcely lift their 

 feet from the floor, but move by double jerks, shuffling the feet a little at the sam.e 

 time. After the performance has continued for ten minutes or so the master of the 

 ceremonies gives a sign and all stop with a loud hugh ! The dance is resumed by the 

 perspiriug crowd at the signal of the drum, which strikes up after a few moments' 

 rest has been allowed. 



Langsdorff (1805) thus describes a dance which he saw at Sitka : 



The dance itself consists chiefly in a very eager spring, in executing which the 

 dancers scarcely remove at all from one spot. They are all barefooted, and wear a 

 single garment only, commonly the woolen carter's frock mentioned above. One of 

 the dancers seems, as it were, to lead the rest, carrying in his hand a thick sort of a 

 staff ornamented with the teeth of sea-otters ; with this he strikes upon the ground 

 to mark the measure, All, without exception, hold in their hands either the tail or 

 wing of the white-headed eagle or a piece of ermine. The latter is valued by them 

 very highly as an article of luxury. They not only ornament their heads with it, 

 and hold it in their hands, but sew it about their garments. The women sit upon 

 the ground at the distance of some paces from the dancers, and sing a not inharmo- 

 nious melody, which supplies the place of music* 



This description of a dance answers very much to one seen by the 

 writer at Fort Wrangell, in September, 1887, called the "stick" dance, 

 in imitation of the Tinne Indians of the interior, up the Stikiue Uiver. 

 It consisted in raising the feet alternately in quick succession as high 

 as possible, without moving the body, to the sound of a drum, chorus, 

 and rattle. It differs radically from the usual coast Indian dancing. 

 From the details given by Langsdorff it would appear that the carry- 

 ing of white plumes indicates that the ceremonials which he witnessed 

 were those of welcome and friendship or peace, as they took place after 

 strained relations between the Eussians and Indians. In the "stick" 

 dance, witnessed at Wrangell, the Indians wore the buckskin costume 

 of the Tinne, audit was given only for the amusement of the guests. 

 As a summary it may be stated that amongst the Tsimshian, Haida, and 

 Tiingit the form of most dancing ceremonies is as follows : 



The guests sit around on the elevated ledges on the sides, as does 

 also the chorus, which latter keeps time to the beating of a drum or 



* Langsdorff, Voyages, Part ii, p. 114. 



