Chelubai

“ I am Quengueza; my fame is great, and the white man comes to see me," and he turned away without saying another word.
My great desire was to persuade Quengueza to come on board, and I was afraid I would not be able to effect this. I said, "Quengueza, I have brought you white people who want to see your river, and I want you to come on board with us; they want to see the Niembouai and the Bakalai." The old chief said he would go; "for," said he, "Chally, I know that no one will hurt me when I am with you." Good Quengueza knew me quite well; he had perfect faith in me ”

“ I have heard the words of the son of the Chepewyan, and the tale he has told of the Happy Island, and the Stone Canoe. It is the belief of his fathers, and he does well to treasure it up in his soul. The Knisteneaux have too their land of delight. It is in a different clime from that of the Chepewyan—how could it be, and continue a land of delight? Wars would arise between these ancient and implacable enemies, and the peace and quiet of the blessed regions be destroyed by their cries of hatred and revenge. Ask a Knisteneau to throw away his war-spear with a Chepewyan in his hunting-grounds? ”

“ I have told you before how much I loved King Quengueza, the great chief of the Rembo River. In the presence of all the people, having his idol by his side, covered with the chalk of the Alumbi, he took my two hands in his, the palms of our hands touching each other. Then he invoked the spirits of his ancestor Kombé Ricati Ratenou, and of his mother Niavi, marking me on the forehead with the mpeshou (ochre) of his mother Niavi; then he invoked her spirit, for his sake, to protect me, his great friend. ”

“ At the time I am describing, Kandurin was for some reason living in Cairo, and writing thence to his friend, the marshal of the district, "Notes of Travel," while she sat languishing behind lowered blinds, surrounded by idle parasites, and whiled away her dreary days in petty philanthropy.
On the way to the house the prince fell to talking.
"It's three days since I have been at home," he said in a half whisper, with a sidelong glance at the driver. "I am not a child, nor a silly woman, and I have no prejudices, but I can't stand the bailiffs. ”

“ You shall be the chief, and whatever you say shall be obeyed. You shall never know hunger as long as there is a plantain-tree on our plantation, or a wild animal in the forests. And, Chally, when you shall say 'I must go—go far away, where nobody has been,' I will let you go; I will help you to go, though my heart will be sad when you depart."
I found Quengueza still in mourning for his brother, whom he had succeeded, and that he had taken his brother's name, "Oganda," which is the name taken by every chief of the Abouya clan. What a queer custom they have! ”

“ Querlaouen then told me his history.
“Chaillee,” said he, “my father belonged to a clan which lived in the Ashankolo Mountains, and in his younger days had crossed a large river, called the Ngouyai. He was the chief of a village, and a great warrior. In the country where we lived there was nothing but fighting and fighting; village was against village, and often brother against brother; not a day passed that some one was not killed. You know our mode of warfare; we kill any one, old man, woman, or babe—we have no mercy. One night my father’s village was attacked. ”

“ With such views, on the 5th of April I left Chelicut, accompanied by Mr. Pearce, Mr. Coffin, Ayto Debib, and a young chief named Chelika Negusta, holding a district in the part of the country through which our road lay, and whom the Ras had appointed to attend us with an escort. I had a short time before been made acquainted with some circumstances relating to the life of this young man, which are so characteristic of the manners of the country, that I shall here mention them by way of introducing him to the knowledge of the reader. ”

“ As the province of Chalaque is the country of the Cherokee, so the province of Xuala is the territory of the Suwali or Sara Indians, better known later as Cheraw, who lived in early times in the piedmont country about the head of Broad river in North Carolina, adjoining the Cherokee, who still remember them under the name of Ani′-Suwa′li. A principal trail to their country from the west led up Swannanoa river and across the gap which, for this reason, was known to the Cherokee as Suwa′li-nuñnâ, “Suwali trail,” corrupted by the whites to Swannanoa. ”

“ In the beaked Chelmon the body is greenish and iridescent; the fins are green, with reflection of azure; a black spot, surrounded by a pearl-white circle, is seen on the dorsal fin, in length about one-third that of the soft rays; five vertical stripes of azure-color, and bordered with a nacreous white line, adorn the body; one of these stripes crosses the eye obliquely; a second one, bisecting the nape of the neck, extends to the ventral fins; the next two mark the flanks, and the posterior stripe bisects the root of the caudal fin. ”

“ John G. McMillan,—who, with their husbands, went up the coast by a trail as far as the government warehouse at Owyhut, and thence to the Quinault Reservation along the beach, crossing the rivers at their mouths, where they were most shallow. On the Chepalis one settler was found who had lived there for nine years. At the reservation they were entertained by the family of the agent, Captain Willoughby, who, with Mrs. Willoughby, related to them many Indian legends. But in these legends I see little to admire; they are exceedingly puerile and pointless, and not worth preserving. ”

“ Upon its banks were groves of beautiful trees of all kinds, and many, very many canoes were seen gliding over its waters. A light breeze ruffled its waves—so light that they only reminded him of the opposition which a weak man makes to the will of the strong. Afar, in the centre of the lake, lay the beautiful island appointed for the residence of the good Chepewyan. And scarcely three bowshots from him, leaning upon a bank of flowers, in contemplation of the glorious scene, was the soul of her so fondly loved. Beautiful vision! The sight lends to his steps the fleetness of an antelope ”

“ This chief did evil unto his subjects, seizing their property and beheading and maiming many with the leiomano (shark’s tooth weapon) and pahoa (dagger) , without provocation, so that he became a reproach to his people. From such treatment Kahulupue endeavored to dissuade him, assuring him that such a course would fail to win their support and obedience, whereas the supplying of food and fish, with covering [204] for the body, and malos, would insure their affectionate regard. The day of the people was near, for the time of conflict was approaching when he would meet the enemy. ”

“ The Chepewyans are a sober, timorous, and vagrant people, and of a disposition so selfish as sometimes to have excited suspicions of their integrity. Their complexion is swarthy; their features are coarse, and their hair is lank, but not always of a black colour; nor have they, universally, the piercing eye, which generally animates the Indian countenance. The women have a more agreeable aspect than the men; but, in consequence of their being accustomed, nine months in the year, to travel on snow-shoes, and to drag heavy sledges, their gait is awkward. ”

“ As if to typify the force that was to dominate their region in later centuries, the Checagau country fell to the conquering "canoe men," the adventurous Pottawatomies, the Chippewas, the Sacs, and kindred tribes who, unafraid to venture on the water, turned to trade, exchanging furs and pelts with the French pioneers for food, blankets, and ornamental trinkets. They became the masters of the lake country, and the broken remnant of the uncommercial tribe fled to the Wabash, there to wail their plaintive songs. ”

“ They should sometimes be overcome by a force of inferior numbers; and often seek the beasts of the chace for many weary days without finding them. And, saying thus, he gave the arrow into the hands of the chief man of the Chepewyans.
For many, very many ages, the Chepewyans scrupulously remembered the injunctions of the mighty Bird respecting the arrow, and kept it treasured up in the house of the great council. While they did so, they were the most fortunate tribe on the earth, and became lords over all, conquerors in every battle, and the most fortunate hunters the world has ever known. ”

“ We let all our canoes pass down the stream a little way, in order that we might hold a grand palaver. Adouma, Quabi, Rapero, all Quengueza’s nephews, were present. Querlaouen and Malaouen, the two most redoubtable warriors of the Bakalai of the Ovenga, were also there; these five, with Quengueza and myself, formed the Grand Council.
Quengueza, being an old man, was to remain where he was with all the party, while myself and the five others were to move in a canoe and make land near where the elephants were. ”

“ The Chepewyans have been accused of abandoning their aged and infirm people to perish, and of not burying their dead; but these are melancholy necessities, which proceed from their wandering way of life. They are by no means universal, for it is within my knowledge, that a man, rendered helpless by the palsy, was carried about for many years, with the greatest tenderness and attention, till he died a natural death. ”

“ After a few days the Ashiras returned, and we concluded to take our departure the next morning.
Quengueza, besides being an illustrious warrior, was a man who had a great deal of common sense, and, after every thing was packed and ready, he ordered my men to come to him. The old chief's countenance wore a grave aspect, and, after looking in the fire for some time, smoking all the while as hard as he could, he said, "You are going into the bush; you will see there no one of your tribe; look up to Chally as your chief, and obey him. Now listen to what I say. You will visit many strange tribes. ”

“ On their approach we descended into the valley, and were met by the two chiefs, Shalaka Selassé and Ayto Shiho, who, in honour of the mission, dismounted from their horses, and uncovered themselves to the waist as they came up to pay their compliments. The number of attendants increased every moment as we advanced to Chelicut, and, before we reached the gateway of the Ras's mansion, we found some difficulty in making our way. ”

“ While all this was going on in Neyoor, Chellalu, then just two years old, was very ill in Dohnavur. Mr. and Mrs. Walker were still there, and they nursed her night and day; but at last a letter came, evidently meant to prepare me for fresh sorrow. "Every little lamb belongs to the Good Shepherd, not to us," the letter said, and told of a temperature 106° and rising. The child, all spirit and frolic, had little reserve strength, and there was not much cause for hope. But we were spared this parting. Chellalu is with us still. ”

“ Other diseases have been almost equally fatal, and before many years, the once numerous natives of this country, although apparently easily susceptible of a certain civilisation, will have diminished to a very small company.
On the 8th of September we left Kamloops with Mr. McKay, and accompanied by Mr. and Mrs. Assiniboine, the boy, and another Indian. We had determined to take our friends down to Victoria, for, although The Assiniboine had once visited the Red River Settlement, the woman and boy had never seen anything more like a town than a Hudson’s Bay Post. ”

“ Chelika Negusta had early in life inherited the possession of a small district in the neighbourhood of the Tacazze, on the borders of which resided a more powerful chief, who, taking advantage of the superior number of his troops, was continually in the habit of plundering the domains of his neighbour. ”

“ Leaving this quiet harbour on the left, they followed where the wider channel led to Klu-quilth-soh, that dark and stormy gate, where Indians say the dreaded Chehahs dwell among the rocky heights--"The Gates of Hell," and when men seek to pass those gates the Chehahs blow upon them winds of evil fates from north and south and east and west. The water boils in that great witches pot, while Indians seek a sheltered beach in vain--no beach is there, no shelter from the storm. The mighty cliffs frown down relentlessly ”

“ Chelika Negusta, then a young man of only nineteen years of age, was of too proud a disposition to let such outrages pass with impunity; and, therefore, took occasion, the first time he met his opponent, personally to affront him, and, with more courage than prudence, challenged him to single combat. The elder chief, who had before been distinguished in battle, accepted the challenge, expressing, at the same time, great contempt for his antagonist ”

“ The Chehalis is spoken in three dialects, the Chehalis proper, the Quaiantl, and the Queniauitl. [III'-30]
The languages of the Salish Family, particularly that of the Chehalis, are rich in words, by means of which 619 everything coming within their knowledge may find expression; they are not easily acquired by strangers; it is difficult for the different nations and tribes to make themselves understood to one another. This is owing principally to the many localisms in vogue among them, of which there is a good specimen in the Chehalis language. ”

“ Gulábí Aghá not having the least doubt that the Sípáhí, who had transported him so charitably into the meadows of Kághid Khánah, was no other than the prophet Khizr himself, laid hold of the skirt of his robe, saying, “I am thy slave, O King! and will never again quit thee.” The Sipáhí answered him very roughly, “Be gone, man! We are not the man of whom thou speakest.” Gulábí Aghá, however, laid hold of him the faster ”