CHAPTER IX 



THE NORTHERN ATHABASCANS 



THE Athabascan family is separated, geographically, into 

 three primary groups: Northern, Pacific, Southern. 



The Northern group includes the tribes inhabiting the region 

 which is bounded by the narrow territory of the Eskimos on the 

 north and east; by the Churchill River and Lake Athabasca 

 on the south; and on the west by coast tribes of other stocks. 

 They occupy nearly the whole of the interior of Alaska, and 

 reach the coast at Cook's Inlet and at Copper River. The 

 Pacific group includes a number of tribes in Washington, Ore- 

 gon and California, the names of which are not widely known. 

 The Southern group embraces the Navajo, Apache, and Lipan 

 tribes. 



The best description of the Northern Athabascans is that 

 given by Samuel Hearne, who crossed their territory, without 

 flourish of trumpets, in 1 771-2. This officer of the Hudson's 

 Bay Company was the first explorer who reached " The Frozen 

 Ocean," north of this continent, overland. 1 His excellent de- 

 scription of the natives acquaints us with their character before 

 it had been modified by contact; it shows us that there has 

 been little change in their condition during the century and a 

 quarter which has since elapsed. 



At present I can offer only a few observations regarding 

 these people, with whom I was hardly in sympathy when I was 

 with them. They did not wish to see mountable specimens of 

 the caribou and musk-ox taken out of the country, 2 and as I 

 did not attempt to buy their good will I did not obtain it, 

 except in a few instances. During the three years which have 

 passed since my residence among the Dog Ribs, I believe that 



1 See p. 132, ante. 

 8 See p. 71, ante. 



158 



