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households under him. We would naturally presume that it has been in 
the possession of his ancestors from time immemorial, taking it for granted 
that such native emblems are really of some antiquity. Had the Black- 
fish been the distinctive crest of his household at the time when Wa-iget 
separated from him and migrated southward to the Skeena, the new 
branch, as well as the parent, in the usual way would have retained the 
privilege of using it w’herever they settled in the course of time. Yet, we 
find that the two crests owned by Wa-iget — the Blackfish, and The-Mr.- 
Ross’-dog — ^have not been in his possession for more than a century, if 
that long. 
The Blackfish was for the first time adopted within, let us say, the 
last forty years, from his Nass River relative Tseebasa. John Brown 
(Kweeyaihl), of Kispayaks, whose age exceeds sixty years, ^ remembers 
an interesting controversy about it. Wa-iget brought the Blackfish crest 
back from the Nass, where he had visited his relatives, and wanted to use 
it, to show his connexion with Tseebasa. But he met with opposition 
within his own phratry at home. Someone approached Kweeyaihl (Brown), 
who wanted him to join in and “make a fuss, to prevent the introduction of 
a new crest.” But he “did not see any harm in this.” The opposition 
collapsed; and the Blackfish was carved on the totem-poie. This, as we 
have seen in the “Introduction,” is of considerable interest, since it throws 
some light on the growth and process of diffusion of this and similar crests 
at a recent date. 
The crest of the \Wiite-man’s-dog or, more precisely, Mr.-Ross’-dog, 
originated about 1825 in the following circumstances. The Tsetsaut or 
Sekanee Indians of the interior were the traditional enemies of the Gitksan. 
Raids and invasions upon each other's territories were of frequent occur- 
rence. Soon after the North West Company established a post at Fort St. 
James (1808), it seems, at least from this narrative, that a subsidiary 
establishment had been founded at Bear lake (Tamsesaayen), under the 
direction of a Mr. Ross. A Tsetsaut party at the time raided the village 
of Kisgagas, while most of the hunters were away, killed two men with 
the flint-lock musket in their possession — the first gun seen in the country — ■ 
and returned home with a captive, a niece of the head-chief whom they had 
killed. This young woman was rescued by the white people at Bear lake 
and later sent back home. A retaliation party, under her guidance, pro- 
ceeded to the Tsetsaut country; but decided to visit the white man’s fort 
on the way. Here they observed the white man, his possessions, and his 
strange ways, for the first time, and considered their adventure in the 
light of a supernatural experience. They marvelled in particular at the 
white man's dog, the palisade or fortification around his houses, and the 
broad wagon road; all three of which they decided to adopt as crests. 
Wa-iget was allotted the White-man 's-dog C Ause~Midaw / or Mr.-Ross'- 
dog CAuse-Mmselaws) as his own share; the Palisade (Yoes) was granted 
to Malulek's family;® and other similar privileges were extended to other 
participants. They gave two big feasts during the next years, to which 
they invited representatives of the other Gitksan tribes as guests — the 
^And a dependable informant, who spent a part of his life at Kisgagas. 
*The white man's dog differed from the native in several ways. The outstanding differences to the Indians, 
however, consisted in its long head and drooping ears, which features they emphasized in their carvings. 
♦The head-chief of Kisgagas, of the Larhsail phratry. 
