![]() Most of the other whites who fell into the hands of Indians on this coast were treated in a similar manner. Thus, John Jewitt, at the beginning of the 19th century, was preserved as a slave by the Nootka Chief Maquinna, because he was an ironworker and would be valuable property. This was particularly the case on the North Pacific Coast, where slavery was an institution. John Jewitt was held as a slave by the Nootka tribe.Īt the same time, the attitude assumed toward a person thrown among Indians too far from his own people to be protected by any ulterior hopes or fears on the part of his captors, was usually that of the master to slave. There numerous stories of great misfortune overtaking one who refused hospitality to a person in distress, and of great good fortune accruing to him who offered assistance. And finally, the existence of a higher ethical feeling toward strangers, even when there was apparently no self-interest to be served in extending hospitality, is often in evidence. If nothing were to be had from the stranger, he might be entirely ignored. If he brought among them certain much-desired commodities, the first impulse might be to take these from him by force and seize or destroy his person, but, it would quickly be seen by wiser heads that the source of further supplies of this kind might thereby be imperiled, if not entirely cut off. Another defense for the stranger was, what with civilized people is one of the best guarantees against war, the fear of disturbing or deflecting trade. In such cases, the virtues of the clan or gentile organizations as peace-making factors made themselves evident, for if the stranger belonged to a clan represented in the tribe he was among, the members of that clan usually greeted him as a brother and extended their protection over him. Toward a person belonging to a tribe with which there was neither war nor peace, the attitude was governed largely by the interest of the moment. ![]() ![]() Peace of this kind was very tenuous however, especially where there had been a long-standing feud and might be broken in an instant. Toward other clans or bands of the same tribe, actions were also governed by well-recognized customs and usages which had developed over hundreds of years, but with remote bands or tribes, good relations were assured only by some formal peace-making ceremony. ![]() From the members of his own group, or what was considered such, certain ethical duties were exacted of tribal members which could not be neglected without destroying the fabric of society or outlawing the transgressor. The treatment accorded captives was governed by ethical concepts that went hand in hand with a clan, gentile, and other blood-related organizations of Native American society. ![]()
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