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Jerry Jack Sr.

Jerry Jack SrMed

Another example of responsibility is when someone got a seal they would bring it to certain individuals to cut up and give out to the people as this individual knew who owned each piece of that seal because that was the responsibility of this person. Each piece of that seal was owned by the chiefs and was given to them and their houses.
Feeding the chief first was a priority for the people. Not only nourishing his body but nourishing his well being in telling him this is the way you are going to be. Feeding positive energy to the chief was done by telling the chief he was going to be a good chief, he is going to look after his people, and you are going to listen to your advisors.
We are like the killer whale in how they organize and share food. That is why when that whale came in our territory or our chief’s territory we knew it was our chief coming home. Before Chief Maquinna went home (died) he said “I’m going to come back as a kakawin.” [Killer whale]. That is how we know that whale is our chief.
Utilizing the resources in our territory was also an important part of being Nuuchahnulth. For example, the yew wood tree was used for making paddles, long sharp poles for spearing, and all Nuuchahnulth weapons were made out of the yew wood tree. These are only small examples of the resources used by Nuuchahnulth for millenniums.