Three California Writers:

The California Indians
by Alfred C. Gillis

Edited by: Cindy Beck

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THE CALIFORNIA INDIANS

The Awakening

The awakening of the Indians of California to the tremendous task of solving the many problems that confront them as a people is noticeably remarkable.

Since their organization into auxiliaries to the Indian Board of Co-operation by F. G. Collett three years ago, their progress has been very rapid.

Early Writers and Their Propaganda

Early writers were wont to speak of these people as being of low order. They were spoken of as “Digger Indians”¹ who were content to feed upon jack rabbits and grasshoppers, too timid to attack larger game as were the Indians of the plains and the Atlantic seaboard, and various other misleading statements. However, the truth of the matter is quite to the contrary. The mountain tribes of California were the equals as hunters and warriors to any of the Indians of the continent. They were considered inferior to the eastern Indian because in their conflict with the white man, they lacked the modern rifle which the Indians of the East used so effectively in their war with the white man. The Sioux, Blackfeet and Apaches were in possession of firearms and were able to make a stubborn resistance against both the soldiers and the settlers in defense of their home and land. This, however, was not the case in California owning to the fact that very early a law was placed on the Statute Book of California forbidding the sale of guns or ammunition to an Indian.

The influx of settlers because of the discovery of gold in California was much more sudden than in any other state of the Union; that is, the migration was not gradual as in other states. Guns had been traded to the Eastern and Northern Indians but had not yet been introduced among the Indians in California. Therefore when the sudden influx of the white man came, the Indians found themselves helpless before an adventurous and intelligent people, equipped with superior weapons, bent on completely destroying them. And what were “feather flints” to modern firearms? The Indian was in possession of the land and the white man wanted it. The question of justice in the matter did not enter into their mind. They just took possession of the land and drove the Indian off.

Hunters and Warriors.

The California Indians were among the mightiest hunters of the continent. To trail and kill a bear in a hand-to-hand combat was the test of the courage of a man. They hunted and killed the most ferocious animals in North America with bow and spear. True, they were the grizzly bear hunters and to say they were too timid to attack larger games is an absolute and false perversion of the truth.

As warriors, the Modoc, Shastas, Hoopas, Wintoons, the Yanas of the Lassen Butte region and the Piutes of Inyo County are noble and splendid examples.

Their Art Unexcelled.

The California Indians are noted for the excellent work in basketry. The baskets of the Pomos of Lake County are unexcelled anywhere in the world. The Pomos are artists of the highest order. Their products have found their way into the homes of the most cultured in the world.

Dances and Legends.

It is doubtful if a more artistic or more graceful dance is found anywhere, than the “Big Head” dance of the Wintoons. It has often been said that the California Indian has no costume. This is another false statement. The Big Head dancer’s costume I have never seen equaled anywhere, and I have witnessed a great many Indian dances.

The McCloud Indian legend of the great temple in the Pleiades^,2 perfectly translated by Jeremiah Curtain in his “Primitive Myths of North America,” is one of the most beautiful legends I have ever read.

Early History Misleading.

How could the early white man write the true history of these people? Who can blame them for their errors? They knew little if anything of their traditions, language, the meaning of their dances, the meaning of their songs to the Great Spirit, their Philosophy, or their ideas of life and death. The early people of California sought to justify their acts of cruelty and wrong-doing by debasing the California Indian by a widespread and malicious propaganda, some of which still remains upon the sullen pages of history to this day.

“Truth crushed to earth shall rise again.

The eternal years of God are hers.”³

A new day is dawning for the Indians. People no longer take for granted what has been written but pause to ask, is it true? Even in this wicked world, a lie cannot live. To the ash heap with this kind of history. This propaganda of falsehood should perish with its authors.

The Soul of the Indian.

There is an unquenchable fire born in the breast of the Indian, a love of race and splendid heroism that all the fiends of hell cannot drown. There are no true, no nobler people than the Indian. I have seen them live and die and starve in the silent canyons of California rather than leave the shade of their ancestors. The mixed Indians are proud of their white blood, but too true and noble to forget the Indian mother that brought them into the world and nursed them in their childhood. The versatile character of the American Indian is such that he has stamped himself indelibly and forever upon this continent. The Indian was a hunter, a warrior, an inventor, a runner, an athlete of world-wide recognition.

Indian Citizenship.

The State Supreme Court of California in the case of Anderson vs. Mathews⁴ decided that the California Indians are natural born citizens entitled to the same privileges as any one else. There are some people, we are sorry to say, that do not know of this important decision that so vitally affects the Indians of our state.

Not Asking Charity.

The California Indian has never asked the aid of the Government in the way of charity. Of all the Indians of America he has received the least aid from the Government. They only ask their day in court. Their privilege as a voter and citizen, to pay their taxes and attend the public school, for the purpose of obtaining the same education advantages as any other citizen of the state. However, there are thousands today in our public schools and a hundred or more in our High Schools and some in our colleges.

California Chooses Well.

California is a great and good state. She has chosen well. She is building within her own borders a stalwart Indian citizenship whose ancestry dates far back to time immemorial. That citizenship will never leave her, never desert her. In time of trouble they will always be found ready to serve the State and Nation thus live up to their worthy name of the “First Americans.”

Leadership Developed.

An intelligent leadership has developed all over the state with a closer union of all the tribes. The solidarity of the California Indian is no longer a question. There are some people opposed to a money compensation for the Indians of California for narrow, childish and grossly selfish reasons.

The California Indians are only seeking justice. Not long ago, a cartoon appeared in the publication called “Judge.” The Indian was pictured in a long flowing war bonnet riding a high powered automobile and beneath the cartoon were these words: “The only danger from the Indian.” This does not justly apply to the Indian of California. They have no tribal fund at Washington to draw on, no surplus cash to squander. Some of them have automobiles of course, but they have been bought and paid for by hard honest labor.

Virile Character of the Indians.

Like their fathers that hewed their weapons from flint and bone and fought the grizzly bear, the California Indians are self-made men. They are among the most civilized of any Indians in America and are found today in all occupations and callings including the professions.

1. “Digger Indian” was a derisive term for the California tribes dating to the nineteenth century. It refers to the Native practice of harvesting edible roots.

2. The Pleiades star cluster is more commonly known as the Seven Sisters and Messier 45. The cluster contains thousands of stars, of which only a handful are commonly visible to the unaided eye. For northern hemisphere viewers, the cluster is above and to the right of Orion the Hunter as one faces south.

3. Stanza 9, “The Battlefield,” by William Cullen Bryant.

4. In Anderson v. Mathews (174. Cal., 537; 163 Pac., 905), the California Supreme Court established citizenship rights for non-reservation California Indians.