The quarterly of the Oregon Historical Society, Vol. 1, No. 2, June, 1900Oregon Historical Society
History
The quarterly of the Oregon Historical Society, Vol. 1, No. 2, June, 1900
Oregon Historical Society
Oregon -- History -- Periodicals
One great sport was diving. The water of the Willamette River off the
bluff was very deep, and it became a great contest for the young men to
see who could dive deepest and remain under water longest. Some of the
bolder ones even not rising until the blood began to burst from their
noses or mouths.
Labonte recalls with great vividness the wedding ceremonies which he
often witnessed, and that were frequently celebrated here between
contracting parties of the different tribes. It was quite an intricate
ceremony. The tribe of the groom would assemble on one side and that
of the bride on the other. The groom, placed in the forefront of his
people, was dressed in his best, and seated upon the ground. He was
then approached by members of his own tribe, who began removing his
outer garments, article by article. After this was done, members of the
bride's tribe came and reclothed him with different garments and placed
him in readiness to receive his wife. The bride, in the meantime, was
placed in the forefront of her people, but was covered entirely, face
and all, with a blanket. When ready to be presented, she was carried by
women of her tribe, and brought within a short distance of the groom,
but here her bearers halted to rest. Then, probably indicating the
desire of both peoples that the ceremony should proceed, and that all
were friendly, a shout or hallo was raised by all parties, which is
given as follows: "Awatch-a-he-lay-ee. Awatch-a-he-lay-ee." After which
she was taken the rest of the way and presented, while the same cry of
applause and approbation was again raised.
A bride was purchased, and the presents were numerous and valuable.
In case that the groom and bride were descendants of chiefs, presents
were made between the whole tribes. These presents were of all sorts,
and consisted of horses (cuiton), blankets (passissie), guns (mosket),
slaves (eliatie), haiqua shells, or, as the small haiqua shells were
called, cope-cope, which is a kind of turritella, kettles (moos-moos),
tobacco (ekainoos), powder (poolallie), bullets (kah-lai-ton), knives
(eop-taths), or other articles.
The name Champoeg, says Labonte, is not derived from Le Campment Sable,
the French name, but is purely Indian. "Cham," the hard _ch_, not
_sh_, is of the same character as the universal _Che_ prefix of the
Calapooyas; as Chehalem, Chewewa, Chemaway, Chamhokuc, or Chemeketa;
and the latter part, "poeg," or poek, was for a certain plant or root
found there by the Indians, and called po-wet-sie. That this is the
true derivation, and it is not from the French term, meaning the sandy
camp, is evidenced by its similarity to the other Indian names just
given above.
III.
AT SCAPPOOSE.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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