Part 3

The episode of the crowning has no parallel in native custom or ceremonial behavior, probably because "crowning" was a unique experience for the Indians as well as the English. This fact should be kept in mind in judging and estimating the natives' actions and reactions--they were as puzzled as the English. Drake was specifically honored by the Indians, and there is no reason to doubt Fletcher when he states that the name _Hioh_ was given to him. It has been suggested that _Hioh_ was a term of salutation or an interjection,[93] but there is no reason to believe that this was so. The word finds possible equivalents in Coast Miwok for chief, _hoipu_, _hoipa_, or friend, _oiya_.[94] Since the Interior Miwok word for chief is _haiapo_, there is a bare possibility that the _hoi_ of today may have been rendered _hai_ in 1579, though there is no direct evidence to support this suggestion. It should be mentioned here that the Madox account independently verifies Fletcher's remarks on the episode of the crowning, as well as the word for "king" (chief?), which Madox renders as _Hioghe_.[95]

The close scrutiny of the English by the Indians following the "crowning" ceremony indicates that the main business of the day (i.e., the ceremonial crowning by secret society initiates) was over, and that the general public could now take part in the festivities. Of great interest are Fletcher's statements to the effect that the most youthful Englishmen were repeatedly selected as recipients of personal sacrifice and adoration which took the form of lamenting, moaning, weeping, wailing, and self-lacerating. Only one conclusion can be drawn: the Indians supposed that they were looking upon relatives returned from the dead, and hence performed the usual mourning observances.

After all these ceremonies were concluded, the Indians showed the English their infirmities, aches, sores, and wounds, and it was made clear that if the English would but blow upon them they would be made well. This accords fairly well with the curing aspect of certain local ceremonies. For example, the Kuksu doctor of the Pomo might cure by blowing "his whistle over the various parts of his body, particularly those recognized by the patients as the seats of pain."[96] There is no mention of the use of whistles in connection with the ceremony enacted by the Indians. Whistles are so commonly used in local ceremonies that their omission is noteworthy. The detailed nature of the account indicates that this feature was not so strongly developed in 1579 as it is today in local native custom.

_General observations, and occurrences from June 27 to July 23._--The natives were almost constant visitors, and it is noted that ordinarily every third day they brought their "sacrifices" (?). From this and other indications it seems possible that the ceremonial number of the Indians was three. The ceremonial number of the adjoining Pomo is four.[97] The Coast Miwok ceremonial number was probably four, though there is no direct evidence to support this supposition. The Indian bow is spoken of as weak and "more fit for children than for men," a remark to be expected from the English, who were even then employing the famous longbow. The English were impressed with the strength of the natives, but, for Indians accustomed to transporting everything on their backs, their feats of strength seem not surprising. It is also noted that the natives were good at running and that this was the ordinary means of travel. The English admired the native surf fishing. Kroeber has interpreted the passage, "if at any time, they chanced to see a fish, so neere the shoare, that they might reach the place without swimming, they would neuer, or very seldome misse to take it," as signifying diving for fish in the surf. Since this unusual practice is not otherwise recorded ethnographically for any coastal Californian tribe, some other explanation may be in order, and I suggest that Fletcher may have had reference to surf fishing with a round hand net, a practice known to have been followed by the Coast Miwok.[98] One gets the impression that the English found much to admire in their native friends.

Drake, his gentlemen, and others of the ship's company made an expedition into the interior to see the native villages and the country round about. The houses were all of the semisubterranean, circular type discussed previously. Two animals were seen, as also herds of deer and great numbers of "conies," a name which, as used by Fletcher, seems to fit no known animal living today in this coastal area.[99]

The country was named _Albion_ "in respect of the white bancks and cliffes, which lie toward the sea ...," and a post was set up with an engraved brass plate nailed to it. The white cliffs are one of the most conspicuous features of Drake's Bay.[100] That the plate of brass has been found at Drake's Bay is a fact of the greatest significance.

Upon the departure of the English, the Indians were sorrowful, and they burned a "sacrifice" of a string of disk beads and a bunch of feathers. The burning of shell beads in memory and honor of the dead, a custom which Fletcher may have described, is known for the Coast Miwok,[101] Pomo,[102] and neighboring groups.[103]

Aside from those actions of the natives which are usually associated with their attitudes toward the dead (weeping, moaning, self-laceration, use of feathered baskets, sacrifice of shell beads and feathers in the fire), there are other evidences that the English were regarded as the returned spirits of the dead. First is Fletcher's observation that the Indians were "standing when they drew neere, as men rauished in their mindes, with the sight of such things as they neuer had seene, or heard of before that time: their errand being rather with submission and feare to worship vs as Gods, then to haue any warre with vs as with mortall men. Which thing as it did partly shew it selfe at that instant, so did it more and more manifest it selfe afterwards, during the whole time of our abode amongst them." Except for the sole occasion, at the conclusion of the ceremony on June 26, when the Indians embraced the youthful Englishmen, the natives seem to have avoided touching the whites. This is most understandable if it is believed that they looked upon the English as the dead returned,[104] for bodily contact with a dead person or spirit was certain, in their minds, to have disastrous results. Further evidence of this may be contained in the statement: "Our General hauing now bestowed vpon them diuers things, at their departure they restored them all againe; none carrying with him any thing of whatsoeuer hee had receiued...." There is one more bit of inferential evidence along this line which comes from the Madox account. This is the phrase _Nocharo mu_, "touch me not" (i.e., _notcato mu_, "keep away"). It may be asked why Madox recorded this particular phrase out of the many his informant must have heard. The answer is perhaps to be found in the simple fact that the English heard this phrase uttered a great many times, and it stuck in their memory. In view of the fact that the natives held the English in fear as dead people, the phrase "touch me not" might often have been used toward amorous sailors, or against any form of bodily contact.

ADDITIONAL ETHNOGRAPHIC ITEMS IN THE RICHARD MADOX AND JOHN DRAKE ACCOUNTS

In the second deposition of John Drake, cousin to Francis Drake (see below, App. I), there is no new information. There is, however, independent corroboration of the weeping and self-laceration referred to repeatedly in the _World Encompassed_ account. The natives are mentioned as having bows and arrows and as being naked, both of which items are mentioned by Fletcher. The Indians' sadness at the departure of the English, as remarked by John Drake, is a further verification of Fletcher's observations as presented in some detail in _The World Encompassed_.

The brief Madox account is of particular interest since a number of words in the Indian language, a song, and the episode of the crowning are mentioned. The linguistic items are given as follows:

_Cheepe_ bread _Nocharo mu_ tuch me not _Huchee kecharoh_ sit downe _Hioghe_ a king

As Elmendorf and I have already pointed out, the vocabulary may be assigned conclusively to the Coast Miwok language.[105] _Cheepe_, "bread," is equivalent to modern Coast Miwok _tcipa_, "acorn bread." This word alone is the clearest possible evidence that Drake's Indian acquaintances were Coast Miwok. _Huchee kecharoh_, "sit down," probably is an incorrect translation of the phrase. The closest approximation in modern Coast Miwok is _atci kotcato_, "step into the house," and _hoki kotcado_, "go into the house" (_tc_ is phonetically equivalent to the sound _ch_ as in chin). It is possible to explain these differently stated meanings of these phonetically similar phrases as owing to incorrect inductions of meaning under specific circumstances. Kelly's Coast Miwok ethnographic informants stated that, according to old custom, whenever people came to a house they were asked to walk in and were offered a seat in the rear of the house, and food was placed before them. In some such situation, particularly if the English had occasion to be often in the Indian village, they may have repeatedly heard the invitation, "step into the house." Likewise, the phrase _Nocharo mu_, "touch me not," may have been translated by Madox (or his informant) only vaguely, since it represents a situation rather than a concrete object, which would be less liable to misinterpretation. Modern Coast Miwok offers a close parallel in the form of _notcato mu_, which may be literally translated "stay over there," or "stay away" (_notca_, "farther," "yonder").

Madox's word for king, _Hioghe_, is similar to that given by Fletcher (_Hioh_ or _Hyoh_), except that the _ghe_ ending is unusual. From the words of the Indian song given by Madox (see below), in which _heigh_ (i.e., _hai_) appears, it might be suspected that the _gh_ is silent; yet why is the terminal _e_ present? It may be that if _Hioghe_ were exactly similar phonetically to _Hioh_, there would not be a terminal _e_ in _Hioghe_. Thus Madox's' _Hioghe_ may indicate a terminal sound (short or weak _e_?) and therefore be close to modern Coast Miwok _hoipa_ (and Sierra Miwok _haiapo_). That the _gh_ might be an indication of the _p_ sound is possible, or, again, it could represent Madox's attempt to render a weak or indefinite labial sound which was imperfectly remembered by his informant. Too close a phonetic transcription of an Indian language by Elizabethan Englishmen should not be expected--there was little standardization in English spelling[106] at that time. The foregoing is not advanced as an argument to show that the terminal "e" was sounded, but is merely presented as a possibility. Elizabethan English commonly used an unpronounced terminal "e." The song of the Indians "when they worship god" is given by Madox as _Hodeli oh heigh oh heigh ho hodali oh_. No Coast Miwok or Pomo song on record accords exactly with that given by Madox, although some are quite similar. For example, a Coast Miwok _Suya_ song transcribed by Kelly is a repetitive line _Yo ya he yo he o_. Other examples from the Coast Miwok are not available, but some Pomo ceremonial songs may be cited. Stephen Powers[107] gives a Sanel Pomo song:

_Hel-lel-li-ley Hel-lel-lo Hel-lel-lu_

E. M. Loeb[108] gives several Pomo songs which are associated with the Kuksu or ghost ceremony:

1. _He yo he yo he yo He yoha eheya ye To ya he yo ho ho_

2. _Tali, tali, yo yo weya yo, weya yo, ha hi he ya he hotsaii ya hi ho._

3. _He ha le me, le lu hi ma humane, hu ..._

Other Pomo songs used in ceremonies are given by Loeb:[109]

1. _=U =u hulai leli ha ha._

2. _He he la le ha hi hi hi, ya ya ya, hu wa!_

3. _Yo yo hale e he na gagoya =o he he!_

4. _Ho yu ko, he he, a ha a a. Hi ye ko, lai ye ko, He tsi ye._

5. _Yo ho yo ho yaho, he yo ho waha._

These examples show how generally similar are the Coast Miwok[110] and Pomo ceremonial songs of today to the song of 1579 given by Madox. Here again an exact correspondence should not be expected, since it is not known whether the song given by Madox was one associated with a particular ceremonial occurrence, nor is it known how changeable these songs are. And again, in the time that has passed and in the changing course of circumstances since 1579, some exactness has almost inevitably been sacrificed. Madox's statement that the natives sang "one dauncing first wh his handes up, and al ye rest after lyke ye prest and people" verifies Fletcher's description of the singing and dancing at the time of the great ceremony of June 26.

SUPPOSED INDIAN TRADITIONS OF DRAKE'S VISIT

Professor George Davidson was the second investigator to use an Indian tradition as evidence of the Drake's Bay location of the 1579 visit.[111] The source of the tradition is in J. P. Munro-Fraser's _History of Marin County_,[112] and is stated as follows:

First of all comes an old Indian legend which comes down through the Nicasios to the effect that Drake did land at this place [Drake's Bay]. Although they have been an interior tribe ever since the occupation by the Spaniards and doubtless were at that time, it still stands to reason that they would know all about the matter. If the ship remained in the bay thirty-six days it is reasonable to suppose that a knowledge of its presence reached every tribe within an area of one hundred miles and that the major portion of them paid a visit to the bay to see the "envoys of the Great Spirit," as they regarded the white seamen. One of these Indians named Theognis who is reputed to have been one hundred and thirty years old when he made the statement, says that Drake presented the Indians with a dog, some young pigs, and seeds of several species of grain.... The Indians also state that some of Drake's men deserted him here, and, making their way into the country, became amalgamated with the aboriginals to such an extent that all traces of them were lost, except possibly a few names [Nicasio, Novato] which are to be found among the Indians.

Wagner feels that there is no reason or evidence to indicate that the Nicasio Indian tradition refers to Drake,[113] a conclusion with which I agree. If any early expedition did leave pigs with the Coast Miwok, it could have been the Spanish one of 1793, which attempted unsuccessfully to form a settlement at Bodega Bay. Felipe Goycoechea, in 1793 specifically mentions seeing some pigs and chickens which the Spanish had left earlier in the year with the Indians at that place.[114] With Wagner's statement that, if any credit can be given to the pig episode, Cermeno may have been the donor,[115] I cannot agree, mainly for the reason that Cermeno's crew were hungry and would not have given the Indians any pigs if they had had them. The story of the dog is interesting since neither the Pomo nor Coast Miwok had dogs in pre-Spanish times, and the evidence indicates that dogs were introduced shortly after 1800.[116] Aside from these facts, the supposed Nicasio tradition does not have a true ring--it is not the type of story that Indians are accustomed to tell.

A belief among the Coast Miwok[117] and some Pomo[118] tribes that the home of the dead is associated with Point Reyes should perhaps be taken into account. The belief is that this seaward projection is associated with the dead, who follow a string leading out through the surf to the land of the dead. It is barely possible that this belief, which is quite clearly of Coast Miwok origin, is a legendary reminiscence of Drake's visit which seems to have been, in part at least, interpreted by the Indians as the return of the dead. It may be superfluous to mention that no Indian has ever stated his idea of the origin of this legend,[119] or of its association with the visit of Drake's party; yet there remains the possibility that the occurrence made an impression so deep that Point Reyes became in this way associated with the home of the dead in the west, from which the English were supposed to have come and gone. If this tradition were associated with Drake, it would, of course, signify that his anchorage was behind Point Reyes in Drake's Bay. On the other hand, this remarkable point which juts far out into the ocean is a prominent feature of Coast Miwok territory, and by reason of its unique topography might have been associated with local ceremonial beliefs.[120]

I may conclude this discussion by saying that no direct evidence of Drake's visit in 1579 is to be found in recorded local Indian traditions. In view of the long time that has intervened, no native legendary evidence is to be expected. Euhemerism is ordinarily rather an unproductive and hazardous approach for the historian.

RECAPITULATION AND CONCLUSION

The results of this survey can now be weighed and a solution to the problem of the location of Drake's California anchorage suggested.

It has been shown that there is not a scrap of ethnographic evidence to suggest that Drake landed in Trinidad Bay and saw the Yurok Indians. The Hondius _Portus Novae Albionis_ might apply equally to Bodega Bay or Drake's Bay, and by itself can only rise to the level of supporting, rather than primary, evidence. Thus, in reference to the Trinidad Bay theory, the map cannot alone and unaided prove the point against the overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

The ethnographic evidence indicates strongly, indeed almost conclusively, that Drake landed in territory occupied by Coast Miwok Indians.[121] Since Pomo culture and Coast Miwok Indian culture were so similar as to be almost indistinguishable, the culture described by Fletcher might refer to either Coast Miwok or Pomo, and no solution would be forthcoming were it not for the additional fact that _all_ the unquestionably native words (_Hioh_, _Gnaah_, _Huchee kecharo_, _Nocharo mu_, _Cheepe_) are of Coast Miwok derivation. It may therefore be concluded that Drake had contact mainly with the Coast Miwok. Any effort to prove that the customs described point expressly to the Pomo as Drake's visitors would have to deny the linguistic proofs and rest upon the unlikely assumption that Pomo and Coast Miwok culture were markedly divergent in 1579.[122] The Pomo ethnographic data cited here are therefore to be looked upon not as unique Pomo cultural traits, but as supplementary, comparative material which is at a premium for the Coast Miwok. But there are two bays in Coast Miwok territory to which Drake might have brought his ship. These are Drake's Bay and Bodega Bay.

No internal evidence points specifically to either Drake's or Bodega Bay--the accounts lack geographical detail,[123] the ethnographic Coast Miwok culture was in operation in both bays, and contemporary maps are so inaccurate and open to variable interpretation that nothing definite can be ascertained from their inspection. What is needed, therefore, is some hint or lead which will break this stalemate. There are two such leads. The first is the plate of brass left by Drake and recently found at Drake's Bay. Granted the authenticity of the Drake plate, it now does not rank as an isolated find, however spectacular, but rather as good supporting evidence of the conclusion based upon my ethnographic analysis. The second point of evidence is Fletcher's statement that "this country our generall named _Albion_, and that for two causes; the one in respect of the white bancks and cliffes, which lie toward the sea: the other, that it might have some affinity, euen in name also, with our owne country, which was sometime so called." The _Famous Voyage_ version says almost the same, except that the country was named _Nova Albion_, which agrees more closely with the wording of the Drake plate. Wagner has discussed the white cliffs,[124] but his argument is unconvincing. There is no good reason to doubt that the cliffs mentioned were at the bay, since Fletcher implies that the naming took place before the departure.[125] And it must be remembered that white cliffs which face toward the sea[126] are at Drake's Bay and _not at Bodega_.

In June, 1579, then, Drake probably landed in what is now known as Drake's Bay. He remained there for five weeks repairing his ship, and found the Indians the most remarkable objects of interest with which he came in contact. From a comparative analysis of the detailed descriptions of the native ceremonies, artifacts, and language I conclude that in the fullest authentic account, _The World Encompassed_, it is the Coast Miwok Indians that are referred to.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] Alfred L. Kroeber, _Handbook of the Indians of California_, Bureau of American Ethnology, Bulletin 78 (Washington, D.C., 1925).

[2] Robert F. Heizer and William W. Elmendorf, "Francis Drake's California Anchorage in the Light of the Indian Language Spoken There," _Pacific Historical Review_, XI (1942), 213-217.

[3] George C. Davidson, "Directory for the Pacific Coast of the United States," _Report of the Superintendent of the Coast Survey ... 1858_ (Washington, D.C., 1859). App. 44, pp. 297-458.

[4] George C. Davidson, "An Examination of Some of the Early Voyages of Discovery and Exploration on the Northwest Coast of America from 1539 to 1603," _Report of the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey ... June, 1886_ (Washington, D.C., 1887), App. 7, pp. 155-253; and _Identification of Sir Francis Drake's Anchorage on the Coast of California in the Year 1579_, California Historical Society Publications (San Francisco, 1890).

[5] George C. Davidson, "Francis Drake on the Northwest Coast of America in the Year 1579. The Golden Hinde Did Not Anchor in the Bay of San Francisco," _Transactions and Proceedings of the Geographical Society of the Pacific_, ser. 2, Bull. 5.

[6] Henry R. Wagner, "George Davidson, Geographer of the Northwest Coast of America," _California Historical Society Quarterly_, XI (1932), 299-320. The idea that Drake entered San Francisco Bay was held by others than Davidson. See, for example, J. D. B. Stillman, "Did Drake Discover San Francisco Bay?" _Overland Monthly_, I (1868), 332-337. See also Henry R. Wagner, _Sir Francis Drake's Voyage around the World_ (San Francisco, 1926), chaps. vii and viii, and notes on pp. 488-499, esp. pp. 495-496.

[7] J. W. Robertson, _The Harbor of St. Francis_ (San Francisco, 1926).

[8] Hubert Howe Bancroft, _History of California_, Vol. I: _1542-1800_ (San Francisco, 1884), pp. 81-94.

[9] Edward Everett Hale, in Justin Winsor, _Narrative and Critical History of the United States_, Vol. III, pp. 74-78.

[10] Alexander G. McAdie, "Nova Albion--1579," _Proceedings of the American Antiquarian Society_, n. s., XXVIII (1918), 189-198. R. P. Bishop, "Drake's Course in the North Pacific," _British Columbia Historical Quarterly_, III (1939), 151-182.

[11] F. P. Sprent, _Sir Francis Drake's Voyage round the World, 1577-1580, Two Contemporary Maps_ (London, 1927), pp. 10-11, map 2.

[12] Samuel A. Barrett, _The Ethno-Geography of the Pomo and Neighboring Indians_, Univ. Calif. Publ. Am. Arch. and Ethn., Vol. 6, No. 1 (Berkeley, 1908), pp. 28-37.

[13] _Ibid._, n. 7, pp. 36-37.

[14] Kroeber, _Handbook_, pp. 275-278.