Glooscap the great chief, and other stories - ElectricCanadian.com

INTRODUCTION
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life of the Indian. Obedience to the laws and
traditions of the wigwam was the beginning of
the education of his children; by
these laws he
taught respect for custom and for parents.
Form and etiquette were as dear to the savage
as to us, and gentle breeding was as well marked
by the habits in the home. The stranger within
the wigwam was always treated with the most
formal politeness and yet with the warmest hos
pitality. Violation of this first law of social
life would have been exceeded in rudeness only
by a neglect, on the part of the guest, of the
equally precise part that was prescribed for
him.
If we are accustomed to think of the life
the savage as lacking in order and discipline
we need but to look into the wigwam to under
stand our mistake. In the centre is the fire,
by one side of which sit the master and the
mistress of the house, the wife s
the door.
of
place nearest
On the other side of the fire are the
old people, and the younger members of the
family. Toward the end of the wigwam, far
from the door, is the seat of honour, and here
sits the welcomed guest. The men sit crosslegged,
as is the custom, the women with the
feet curled to the side, and the children with
theirs freely extended.
If love and marriage are the greatest part
of life as they are of the story, whether of the