CHAP. 



XIII. 

 V—i - ,- »^ 



1787. 



NORTH WEST COAST OF AMERICA. 271 



was a large boat, and three of a fmaller lize ; tlie large 

 boat capable of holding thirty perfons, and the others 

 about ten people each. From this circumftance I ex- Au'guit. 

 peeled to have feen a numerous tribe, and was quite fur- "" ^^ '^ 

 prifed when I found that it confifted only of three men, 

 three women, the fame number of girls, two boys about 

 twelv^e years old, and two infants. One of the women 

 was very old, I fhould think not lels than eighty. I ob- 

 ferved the oldeft of the men to be very much marked with 

 the fmall-pox, as was a girl who appeared to be about 

 fourteen years old. The old man endeavoured to defcribe 

 the exceflive torments he endured whilft he was afflicted 

 with the diforder that had marked his face, and gave me 

 to underftand that it happened fome years ago. This 

 convinced me that they had had the fmall-pox among 

 them at fome diftant period. He told me that the dif- 

 temper carried off great numbers of the inhabitants, and 

 that he himfelf had loft ten children by it ; he had ten 

 ftrokes tatooed on one of his arms, which I underftood 

 were marks for the number of children he had lofl. I 

 did not obferve any of the children under ten or twelve 

 years of age that were marked ; therefore I have great 

 reafon to fuppofe that the diforder raged a little more than 

 that number of years ago ; and as the Spaniards were on 

 this part of the coaft in 1775, it is very probable that 

 from them thefe poor wretches caught this fatal infedlion. 

 They, it fhould feem, are a nation defigned by Providence 

 to be a fcourge to every tribe of Indians they come near, 

 by one means or other. 



The Spaniards were among them in the height of ' 

 fummer, and probably they caught the infection about the 

 8 month 



