THE QUARTERLY
of the
Oregon Historical Society
The Quarterly disavows responsibility for the positions taken by contributors to its pages
THE INDIAN OF THE NORTHWEST AS REVEALED BY THE EARLIEST JOURNALS.[1]
O. B. Sperlin, Tacoma, Washington.
When Alexander Mackenzie in 1789 was exploring the great river which bears his name, he asked everywhere for information concerning the tribes west of the Rocky Mountains. He was told[2] that natives on the river to the southwest which falls into the Belhoullay Teo or White Man's Lake were of gigantic stature, very wicked, and adorned with wings; that they fed on gigantic birds; and that they possessed the extraordinary power of killing common men with a look of the eye. These native reports of native contemporaries, even to the
- ↑ This paper was read before the Annual Meeting of the Members of the Oregon Historical Society, December 18, 1915.
- ↑ For this study I have found my greatest and most valuable storehouse in the Provincial Library at Victoria, British Columbia. Mr. E. O. S. Scholefield, Provincial Librarian, has done more to unearth needed material than I had imagined could be accomplished. His extensive knowledge of Northwest history has guided me, his kindness and helpfulness have more than encouraged me. I wish to express my deep appreciation of the Provincial Library and my sincerest thanks to Mr. Scholefield. Mr. Charles W. Smith, of the Reference Department of the University of Washington Library, has also been a genuine help to me on numerous occasions. In the earlier stages of the investigation I drew heavily upon the Northwest collections of the Tacoma Public Library, the Seattle Public Library, and the Washington State Historical Society. For the Transactions of the Oregon Pioneer Association I am indebted to Mr. George H. Himes, Curator of the Oregon Historical Society. To Mr. T. C. Elliott, of Walla Walla, I am very grateful for being permitted to examine the proof-sheets of Thompson's autobiography, in process of publication by the Champlain Society of Toronto.
