108 b 



GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF CANADA. 



Bracelets and 

 bangles. 



Tattooing. 



Labret. 



roasting in the fire the woody fungus found on the bark of trees, and 

 afterwards grinding it between stones. This soon becomes nearly black, 

 and resembles dried blood. A mixture of spruce-gum and grease, also 

 of a dark colour, is used to protect the face in cold weather, while 

 those in mourning frequently apply grease and charcoal to the face. 



Bracelets beaten out of silver coins are very generally worn by the 

 women, who often carry several on each arm. The custom of wearing 

 several or many polished copper rings on the ankles and arms was 

 formerly common among the Haidas and Tshimsians. Those for the 

 ankles were round in section, those for the arms flat on the inner side. 

 In Dixon's narrative "large circular wreaths of copper" are spoken 

 of as being frequently worn, both at Norfolk Sound and in the Queen 

 Charlotte Islands. They " did not appear to be foreign manufacture,, 

 but twisted into that shape by the natives themselves to wear as an 

 ornament about the neck." 



Tattooing is universally practised, or rather was so till within the 

 last few years, for it is noticeable that many of the children are now 

 being allowed to grow up without it. The front of each leg above the 

 ankle and the back of each arm above the wrist are the places gene- 

 rally chosen, though the breast is also frequently covered with a design. 

 The patterns are carefully and symmetrically drawn, of the usual 

 bluish colour produced by the introduction of charcoal into punctures 

 in the skin. In one instance, however, a red pigment had also been 

 employed. The designs are often hereditary, and represent the totem 

 crest of the bearer, in the usual conventional style adopted by the coast 

 Indians in their drawings. I have never observed any tattooing to 

 extend to the face, where it is commonly found among the Tinneh 

 people of the interior, in the form of lines radiating from the corners 

 of the mouth, on the chin or forehead. 



Till quite lately the females among the Haidas all wore labrets 

 in the lower lip. Dixon particularly notes this as being the case, 

 though in Norfolk Sound it was only practised by women of rank. 

 Dixon further gives an admirable illustration of the Haida labret in 

 the plate facing page 226 of his volume, already several times referred 

 to. A small aperture first made is gradually enlarged by the insertion 

 of lip-pieces of ever-increasing size, till the lower lip becomes a mere 

 circle of flesh stretched round the periphery of a flat or concave-sided 

 labret of wood or bone, which projects at right angles to the plane of 

 the face. One obtained by Dixon was found by him to measure 3|- 

 inches long by 2-f bi'oad, which is larger than any I have seen. Only 

 among the old women can this monstrosity be now found in its original 

 form. Many middle-aged females have a small aperture in the lip, 

 through which a little beaten-silver tube of the size of a quill is thrust, 



