Legends of Vancouver

"[...]be a creditable member of the nation you must divide your possessions with your less fortunate fellows. I find it much the same amongst the Coast Indians, though they are less bitter in their hatred of the extremes of wealth and poverty than are the Eastern tribes. Still, the very fact that they have preserved this legend, in which they liken avarice to a slimy sea-serpent, shows the trend of their ideas; shows, too, that an Indian is an Indian, no matter what his tribe; shows that he cannot, or will not, hoard money; shows that his native morals demand that the spirit of greed must be strangled at all cost. The chief and I had sat long over our luncheon. He had been talking of his trip to England and of the many curious things he had seen. At last, in an outburst of enthusiasm, he said: "I saw everything in the world—everything but a sea-serpent!" "But there is no such thing as a sea-serpent," I laughed, "so you must have really seen everything in the world." His face clouded; for a moment he sat in silence; then, looking directly at me, said, "Maybe none now, but long ago there was one here—in the Inlet." "How long ago?" I asked.[...]".