Legends of Vancouver | Page 3

the British Empire
as "The Lions of Vancouver."
Sometimes the smoke of forest fires blurs them until they gleam like
opals in a purple atmosphere, too beautiful for words to paint.
Sometimes the slanting rains festoon scarfs of mist about their crests,
and the peaks fade into shadowy outlines, melting, melting, forever
melting into the distances. But for most days in the year the sun circles
the twin glories with a sweep of gold. The moon washes them with a
torrent of silver. Oftentimes, when the city is shrouded in rain, the sun
yellows their snows to a deep orange; but through sun and shadow they
stand immovable, smiling westward above the waters of the restless
Pacific, eastward above the superb beauty of the Capilano Canyon. But
the Indian tribes do not know these peaks as "The Lions." Even the
chief, whose feet have so recently wandered to the Happy Hunting
Grounds, never heard the name given them until I mentioned it to him
one dreamy August day, as together we followed the trail leading to the
canyon. He seemed so surprised at the name that I mentioned the
reason it had been applied to them, asking him if he recalled the
Landseer Lions in Trafalgar Square. Yes, he remembered those
splendid sculptures, and his quick eye saw the resemblance instantly. It
appeared to please him, and his fine face expressed the haunting

memories of the far-away roar of Old London. But the "call of the
blood" was stronger, and presently he referred to the Indian legend of
those peaks--a legend that I have reason to believe is absolutely
unknown to thousands of Palefaces who look upon "The Lions" daily,
without the love for them that is in the Indian heart, without knowledge
of the secret of "The Two Sisters." The legend was intensely
fascinating as it left his lips in the quaint broken English that is never
so dulcet as when it slips from an Indian tongue. His inimitable
gestures, strong, graceful, comprehensive, were like a perfectly chosen
frame embracing a delicate painting, and his brooding eyes were as the
light in which the picture hung. "Many thousands of years ago," he
began, "there were no twin peaks like sentinels guarding the outposts of
this sunset coast. They were placed there long after the first creation,
when the Sagalie Tyee moulded the mountains, and patterned the
mighty rivers where the salmon run, because of His love for His Indian
children, and His wisdom for their necessities. In those times there
were many and mighty Indian tribes along the Pacific--in the mountain
ranges, at the shores and sources of the great Fraser River. Indian law
ruled the land. Indian customs prevailed. Indian beliefs were regarded.
Those were the legend-making ages when great things occurred to
make the traditions we repeat to our children to-day. Perhaps the
greatest of these traditions is the story of 'The Two Sisters,' for they are
known to us as 'The Chief's Daughters,' and to them we owe the Great
Peace in which we live, and have lived for many countless moons.
There is an ancient custom amongst the coast tribes that, when our
daughters step from childhood into the great world of womanhood, the
occasion must be made one of extreme rejoicing. The being who
possesses the possibility of some day mothering a man-child, a warrior,
a brave, receives much consideration in most nations; but to us, the
Sunset tribes, she is honored above all people. The parents usually give
a great potlatch, and a feast that lasts many days. The entire tribe and
the surrounding tribes are bidden to this festival. More than that,
sometimes when a great Tyee celebrates for his daughter, the tribes
from far up the coast, from the distant north, from inland, from the
island, from the Cariboo country, are gathered as guests to the feast.
During these days of rejoicing the girl is placed in a high seat, an
exalted position, for is she not marriageable? And does not marriage

mean motherhood? And does not motherhood mean a vaster nation of
brave sons and of gentle daughters, who, in their turn, will give us sons
and daughters of their own?
"But it was many thousands of years ago that a great Tyee had two
daughters that grew to womanhood at the same springtime, when the
first great run of salmon thronged the rivers, and the ollallie bushes
were heavy with blossoms. These two daughters were young, lovable,
and oh! very beautiful. Their father, the great Tyee, prepared to make a
feast such as the Coast had never seen. There were to be days and days
of rejoicing, the people were to come for many leagues, were to bring
gifts to the girls and to receive gifts of great value from the