Rensselaer Republican, Volume 18, Number 26, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 4 March 1886 — The Alaskan Legend of the Creation. [ARTICLE]

The Alaskan Legend of the Creation.

In his report of the Point Barrow Expedition, Lieutenant Ray devotes some attention to the Alaskans and their legends. During the long winter nights, when food is plenty, he says the natives delight to meet at the council house, or at different iglus (huts), and, over their work, repeat the legends of their race, which have been handed down from father to son. These le- . gends go back to the oyigin of man, and they tell with careful detail of a time when there were no men in all the land, but a spirit called “A-se-lu” dwelt here alone. He made the image of a man in clay, set it up on the shore of the sea to dry, and, after it was dry, he breathed upon it and gave it life, and sent it out into the world. And he called the dog from a long way off to go with the man, that he might help in traveling. After a time the spirit made the suktu (reindeer j, and sent him out into the land, and the, teeth offthe deer were like the teeth of the dog; and after many days the man came to the spirit, and said: “The deer is bad; he devours man.” Whereupon the spirit called in all the deer, and removed all the front teeth from their upper jaws, since, which time men have lived on deer, and the deer have lived on moss and grass. Then the man asked the spirit that (here might be fish in the rivers and sea. And the spirit took a piece of pine and a piece of balsam, and sat by the river where it emptied into the sea, and he whittled long shavings from the pieces of wood, and the shavings fell into the water, and the shavings from the yellow wood became salmon, and those from the white wood became whitefish, and swam away. Their faith in these legends is very strong, and they are extremely opposed to any expressions of doubt or ridicule. It is only by gaining their confidence and abstaining from any expression of doubt iu their presence that they can ba induced to talk about their people or repeat their legends. We heard, but one. legend that referred in any way to the regions of the northward. It was said that many years ago a man from Nuwuk was caught in the moving pack that was setting to the northward so rapidly that he was unable to return to the land. After agreat many days, more than he could count, he came to a land where dwelt a strange people; they spoke a strange language and dressed Tn —deerskins —like the Inyu. Heremained with them a long time, but wishing to' return to his people, he left them one winter and started south over the ice, living upon the seals he caught by the way, and renewing his boots with their skins. The journey was so long that he wore out fifteen pairs oi boots in returning to Nuwuk.