them about; and that the grandfather of the present Lytton chief would go out after a battle and purchase the prisoners taken captive in the fight, who were held as slaves by their captors, and set them free and send them back to their own people again.4 How far this was general I cannot say. That war, however, with the neighbouring tribes was not an unusual occurrence is clear from the fact that it was found necessary to fortify their villages or some particular portions of them by palisades, inside of which the people would retire when hard pressed by the enemy. The name of one of the upper villages close to the boundary of the Stlatlumh [Lillooet] bears testimony to this fact, as it signifies in English “a palisaded enclosure with houses inside,” and the old men of Lytton can recall the old fort of their village. These protective measures would seem to bear out my informant’s statements that the Thompson were not a warring people, and all the notes that I could gather of past encounters with other tribes show the Thompson to be the defenders and not the attackers.
Weapons of Warfare
The warrior’s weapons were the bow and arrow, stone swords, and clubs, etc. Of these latter there were several kinds. One of these was a sling-club formed by inclosing a round stone in a long strip of elk-hide. The stone was placed in the centre of the strip and securely sewn there, the ends of the hide being left to swing the weapon by. This was a deadly weapon in the hands of a skilful person, but awkward to handle by those not accustomed to its use; for if not properly wielded it was just as likely to damage the holder as the person he struck at. A wooden club fashioned from the wood of the wild crab-apple tree was another effective weapon much used by the warriors. This would sometimes be studded with spikes of stone or horn. It was fastened to the wrist by a thong when fighting (see fig. 1). Besides these there were also stone-tipped spears or javelins, and elk-horn or stone tomahawks. Poisoned arrows were used in warfare, and these were always put in a special quiver of dogskin. The stone tips of these arrows were always larger than those used for game. The poison was obtained either from the rattlesnake or from certain roots. For protection the fighting men wore a short sleeveless shirt of double or treble elk-hide, which hung from the shoulders, and was fastened at the sides by thongs. This shirt was called ntsken in the Thompson tongue. It was usually covered with painted figures and symbols of war (see fig. 2) in black, white, and red paint. The two latter colours were mineral products. Red ochre is found in considerable quantities within their boundaries. The white paint was obtained by burning a certain kind of mineral clay which, when burnt, produced a fine white powder easily converted into paint by mixing with oil or fat. This powder was also employed by the women in the weaving of their goat-hair blankets.
A trivial matter or misunderstanding would sometimes bring about a fight. It is recorded that a party of Indians from the interior paid the Thompson a visit once upon a time. The visitors wore soles of pitch upon their feet to protect them. This novel style of foot-gear excited the mirth of the Thompsons so much that their visitors became deeply offended, and a big fight was the result.
Fig. 1 Ancient war club made from wood of the wild crab-apple tree, after drawing by Chief Mischelle of Lytton, B.C.
Fig. 2 Thompson warrior’s shirt of the old days, after drawing by Chief Mischelle, of Lytton.
Feasts
As far as I could learn, the hunting, fishing, and berry grounds of the Thompson were common property. But no one under penalty of a severe punishment could take a fish, pick a berry, or dig a root until after the Feasts of First Fruits had been held. These feasts were conducted as follows: When the salmon, for instance, begin to run, word is brought to the divisional chiefs that the fish are coming up river. Messengers are then sent to the neighbouring villages, calling a meeting of the people on a certain day, at which all must attend at the appointed place. When the day has arrived and the people have assembled, the head chief, attended by the other lesser ones and the elders, opens the ceremony at daybreak by a long prayer. While the prayer is being said everybody must stand with eyes reverently closed. To ensure this being done, as it was regarded as an essential part of the ceremony, certain of the elders were assigned the duty of watching that no one opened his eyes while the prayer was being said. Exactly to whom these prayers were addressed my informant could not tell me. All I could gather was that the “old Indians" believed in some great and beneficent power who dwelt behind the clouds, and who gave them the salmon, fruits, roots, etc., who, if they showed themselves ungrateful or unthankful, could, and might, withdraw his gifts from them. He could not give me any of the words of these prayers.5 After the prayer is over every one present is given a bit of salmon which has been cooked for the purpose. As soon as all have partaken of the salmon a feast is prepared at which each is free to eat as much as he desires. When the meal is concluded, a dance takes place. Each person lets down his or her hair and a space is cleared for the dancers. Singing always accompanies the dancing, and a certain individual leads the dance song in a loud voice, and the dancers keep time with the singer. They dance on this occasion in a circle, with the hands extended, palm upwards, before them, swaying them with a rhythmic motion from side to side as they sing and dance. Towards the conclusion of the dance the time quickens and the movements are more rapid and vigorous. As the dance is about to end the master of ceremonies calls to the people to stretch their palms towards the sky and look upwards. They continue in this attitude for a little while, and the chief presently brings his hands together, closing them as he does so, as if he held something in them, and lowers them gently to the level of his breast and then places them, one fist over the other, against his breast. This action signifies the reception of the gifts asked for in the prayer and song. The whole ceremony is conducted throughout with the greatest decorum and reverence. This dance is repeated again at noon and at sunset. The Feast of Berries and Roots is conducted in a similar manner.
Besides these periodic prayings, daily prayers were said by one of the elders in each keekwilee-house every morning at daybreak, all the worshippers closing their eyes reverently the whole time and repeating in an earnest tone the closing formula Aksaias, which signified to them very much what our “Amen" does to us. Other dances were indulged in at times besides these at the Feasts of First Fruits, at which all the actors sat and swung their extended hands, palm upwards, from side to side, keeping time to a song called koiatct. The Thompson apparently never used masks of any kind at their dances, such paraphernalia being quite unknown to them.
Marriage Customs
Puberty customs seem to have been much simpler among the Thompson than among other tribes. All I could gather concerning them was that when a girl arrived at puberty she must withdraw herself from her family for a time and live apart by herself. I could not gather that any particular course of life was prescribed for the occasion, or that she was forbidden to eat certain kinds of food. It would appear that their whole lives were much simpler and more natural than those of their congeners elsewhere. We see this in their marriage customs, for instance, which are simple compared to those of other tribes, or even with those of the Stalo or River Indians below them.
When a youth arrived at marriageable age he generally had a maiden in his eye whom he wished for wife. He would first put himself in her way and they would stroll out together. He would next send her little presents from time to time. If she were not averse to his suit she would accept these; if otherwise she would refuse them. If his gifts were accepted he would then declare his liking for her, and tell her he would give her a year to make up her mind in the matter. If things went smoothly during this period, at the end of the time he would then send a present by a friendly elder of his family to the girl’s parents. If they accept the present they call together the relatives and friends of the family, who discuss the subject; and if the young man is acceptable to the majority of them, the girl’s father takes an elk-hide, cuts it into strips of useful lengths, and gives each one present a piece. This witnesses to their agreement. After this has been done one of the old men of the girl’s family
