Robert Rice, Sr.: Rescuing the Pilots

by

Robert Rice, Sr.
Recorded in 1998

Transcribed and translated by Theresa Thorne and Donna Gerdts. Last edited June 24, 2022.

  1. ’o si’em’, quyupleynuhw.
    1. Oh, my most honoured friends, [I am] Quyupleynuhw.
  2. yuthustalu tsun tse’ kwthu ni’ sla’thut ’u lhunu ten kwutst nem’ tth’oom’ nem’ ’utl’ tl’elhum.
    1. I will tell you a story about me and my mother when we went berry picking at Tl’elhum [St. Mary’s Lake/ White Beach, on Salt Spring Island].
  3. tum’qw’i’lus.
    1. It was summertime.
  4. netulh ’i’ hwuytham’shus lhunu ten.
    1. Morning came, and my mother woke me up.
  5. She called me McGarfy.  “Wake up! hwuythut! nem’ ch tth’oom.”
    1. “McGarfy,” [she called me,] “Wake up! We’re going berry-picking.
  6. “’uy’.”
    1. [I said,] “Okay.”
  7. nusuw’ ’umut, xlhas, t’ahw, suw’ hiqut thu snuhwulh tst.
    1. I got up and ate, and I went down the beach and pushed our canoe in.
  8. ’uhwiin’ thu snuhwulh tst, ’uwu tl’eqtus.
    1. Our canoe was small, not a long one.
  9. ’een’thu xut’ustum’ yu q’i’q’uxathut yu xut’e ’u tu’i kwus yu ’i’shul’.
    1. I was what you call swinging back and forth like this when paddling.
  10. q’i’q’uxathut q’i’q’uxathut.
    1. Swinging, swinging back and forth.
  11. suw’ yu q’eq’unuts lhunu ten sutst ’uw’ huye’.
    1. My mother ruddered the canoe and we set off.
  12. nem’ ’utl’ tl’elhum.
    1. We went to Tl’elhum.
  13. tsakw ni’ ’uw’ tsakw ni’ ’utl’ xextl’uqun.
    1. Far, it was far, a place called Xextl’uqun [Norway Island].
  14. xextl’uqun tthu shni’ tst kwu lelum’ tst.
    1. Xextl’uqun was where our house was at.
  15. ni’ yu ’i’shul’ wa’wu ’apun ’u tthu netulh ’i’ ni’ tst huy’uluw’sh lhu ’uhwiin’ skwi’kwthe’; xut’u sthithqutsun kw’ sne.
    1. We paddled, and at 10:00 AM we passed a little island; Sthithqutsun is the name.
  16. ni’ tsun kwu’elh ’uw’ hwun’ yu ’i’shul’ ’i’ wulh tetsul tthu yu lhalhukw’.
    1. I was still paddling when an airplane came.
  17. ’eey’ kwthu xixul’ux ’u kwey’, ’eey’ kwu xixul’ux.
    1. There was war going on at this time, a continuing conflict.
  18. ’i’ m’i yuse’lu they’ yu lhalhukw’ suw’ m’i ’ewunusalum, tl’lim’ ’uw’ yu stutes, m’i ’iputhut.
    1. There were two planes that came right towards us, brushed right by us.
  19. suw’ yul’ew’ tthu nuts’a’ ’uwu ni’us hith ’i’ m’i tetsul tthu qul’et yu lhalhakw’.
    1. One passed by and not long after another one came flying by.
  20. nilh hakwushus tthu hwulunitum’ kws t’ut’a’thut-s lhalhukw’s, t’ut’a’thut-s lhalhukw’s.
    1. These are what the white people use for practicing flying, practicing flying.
  21. susuw’ yu tsukwul’ul’qum’ tthu nuts’a’ yu st’e’ ’u tthey’.
    1. They were following each other doing that.
  22. ’i’ yul’ew’ tthu nuts’a’, sus m’i thuythut tthu nuts’a’.
    1. One would pass, and the other would make its pass.
  23. tl’lim’ ’uw’ yu stutes, stutes ’utl’ (lhnimulh) nus m’i q’puthut.
    1. They swooped down at us, very close.
  24. hay tthu nuts’a’ ni’ ’uw’ huye’ m’i tetsul tthu nuts’a’.
    1. One would pass, and then the other would come.
  25. susuw’ tiqw’ tthu nuts’a’ I’ll call it a wing… susuw’ plup susuw’ tl’pilustum.
    1. And then one bumped the other…I’ll call it a wing…and plop…and they sank.
  26. ’aa, hay ’ul’ hith tthuw’ matqw’um’ ’ul’ tthu qa’.
    1. The water was bubbling for a really long time.
  27. hi.i.ith hith kws ’uwu kws qwals lhunu ten ’i’ tl’e’ tsun ’uw’ ’uwu kwunus qwal.
    1. It was a long time before my mother spoke, and I also was speechless.
  28. suw’ thut lhunu ten, “wa’wu nilh ’uw’ yath ’uw’ sul’uthut-s tun’a hwulunitum’— syulyal’xw q’u.”
    1. My mother finally said, “I guess that is what they always do, these white people—surely crazy .”
  29. hith ’i’ m’i p’ukw tthu naan’ts’a’.
    1. Very long after, one came up.
  30. yu kwukwtsem’, “ts’ewutham’sh! ts’ewutham’sh!”
    1. He was screaming, “Help! Help!”
  31. hith ’i’ m’i p’ukw tthu naan’ts’a’, tl’uw’ yu kwukwtsem’,
    1. Long after, the other emerged, also screaming,
  32. “ts’ewutham’sh! ts’ewutham’sh!” ’oo muy!
    1. Help me! Help me!” Oh goodness!
  33. sutst nuw’ ’ushul nem’ ’u …numnus… ’uhwiin’ tthu snuhwulh tst.
    1. So, we paddled toward them…our canoe was quite small.
  34. skw’ey kws ’alahs tthey’ lhalhukw’ mustimuhw, skw’ey kws ’aalhs.
    1. Those flying people could not board our canoe.
  35. “’aa, tstamut tst ’a’lu?”
    1. “Now what were we to do?”
  36. suw’ xut’us lhunu ten, “na’nuts’a’ kwun’els ’i’ ’u tu’inulh.
    1. Then my mother said, “One will hold onto this side.
  37. na’nuts’a’ tse’ kwun’els ’i ’u tthu lhaal’we’s ’u tu’i.”
    1. And the other one will hold onto the other side.”
  38. Then she said, “’ushul ch kwu’elh!”
    1. Then she said, “Now paddle!”
  39. nusuw’ ’ushul, lhel, tsakw, tsakw tthu shnem’ tst.
    1. And I paddled toward shore, and it was a long way to go.
  40. ni’ tst ts’imul’ ’u tthu yu shhwunum’ tst suw’ t’ahw ’u tthu snuhwulh.
    1. We came close to shore and brought the canoe up to the beach.
  41. ’i’ tl’lim’ ’uw’ wulh slhtsiw’s tthu lhalhukw’ mustimuhw.
    1. They were very, very tired, these flying people.
  42. sutst ’uw’ qw’im, ts’ewut.
    1. We got off and helped them.
  43. suw’ wutl’uts’ tthu na’nuts’a’, wutl’uts’.
    1. One of them fell down, and then the other.
  44. skw’ey kws kwuyx-s tl’uw’ lhelhuq’um’ ’ul’.
    1. They could not move, but just lay there.
  45. ’i’ ni’ yuhw yu tth’etth’um’ tthu qa’, yu tth’etth’um’.
    1. The tide must have been going out.
  46. suw’ hith kwus lhelhuq’.
    1. They lay there for a long time.
  47. wawa’ ’uy’ kwus yu tth’etth’um’ tthu qa’.
    1. Maybe it was a good thing that the tide was going out.
  48. ha’ulh yu qumul’ ’i’ ni’ulh ’uw’ q’ay tthu lhalhukw’.
    1. If it had been coming in, they might have died, these flying people.
  49. hi.i.ith kwus lhe’lhuq’.
    1. They lay there for a long time.
  50. suw’ hwuy tthu na’nuts’a’, hwuy tthu na’nuts’a’.
    1. And then one of them woke up.
  51. suw’ lhxilush, lhxilushst-hwus lhunu ten.
    1. Then, he tried to stand up, and my mother helped him up.
  52. suw’ ’imushstum, nem’ ’u tuw’ tsa’luqw, ’uy’ tthu spulhxun ni’ ’u they’.
    1. She brought him up to a nice open field.
  53. suw’ kwunutus tthu…’uwu te’ s-hwulmuhwa’lh sne kwey’ parachute.
    1. There they examined their […there is no First Nations word for] parachutes.
  54. suw’ pthutum, pthutum ni’ ’u tthu spulhxun.
    1. They spread them out in the field.
  55. wa’wu m’i suwq’tum lumnum tthey’….
    1. Maybe they searched looking for that…
  56. suw’ m’i ’ewu kwu tsswe’…’uwu te’.
    1. Then they came over to their own… and there was nothing.
  57. suw’ xlhastum tthu hwulunitum’ ’u kwu suplil.
    1. My mother fed some bread to the white people.
  58. ’uw’ hay ’ul’ yu kwun’etus lhunu ten.
    1. That was all she brought along.
  59. suw’ ’ulhtun.
    1. They ate.
  60. suw’ xut’u yuthustum tthu hwulunitum’, “nem’ tst tse’ ’ushul suwq’ ’u kw’ shtuteem’.”
    1. My mother told the white people, “We will go paddle to look for a place to phone.”
  61. sutst nem’ ’uw’ ’u.u.ushul tetsul ’u tthu lelum’ suw’ tsam.
    1. We paddled along until we reached a house and climbed up to it.
  62. kwuhwtssum suw’ yuthustum… ni’ ..  ’i tst qwal ’u kwu yey’sul’u ’ula’ulh ’u lhu lhalhukw’.
    1. We knocked and told them about the two pilots.
  63. susuw’ temutum …hmm… temutum kwu shni’s.
    1. They called where they were from [the Air Force].
  64. yesul’u ts’twa’ tintun ’i’ m’i tetsul thu thi pout yu lhalhukw’, tl’lim’ ’uw’ yu lhalhukw’.
    1. It was maybe two hours, and this big boat came flying in, full speed.
  65. susuw’ huye’stum.
    1. They took them away.
  66. susuw’ hay sutst ’uw’ wulh nem’ ’ushul nem’ ’utl’ Jimmy Ryan suw’ tth’oom tst.
    1. After that we paddled to Jimmy Ryan’s place, where we picked.
  67. suw’ huy kws tth’utth’oom’ tst sutst ’uw’ nem’ t’akw’.
    1. After we picked berries, we went home.
  68. ni’ tst melqt.
    1. We forgot about the incident.
  69. hi.i.ith hith wawa’ yesul’u lhihw months.
    1. A long time passed—maybe two or three months.
  70. tl’uw’ wulh tetsul thu thi pout ni’ ’u kwthey’.
    1. A big ship came in there.
  71. suw’ huye’stalum nem’ ’utl’ mutouliye’.
    1. They took us away along with them to Victoria.
  72. xu’athun tintun kwutst ’ula’ulh ’u lhey’ pout ’i’ ni’ tst tus.
    1. About four hours on board this ship and we reached our destination.
  73. suw’ nemustalum ’u tthu thi ’ulhtunew’t-hw.
    1. They brought us to a restaurant.
  74. Cantaloupe sul’its’ ’u tthu ice cream xlhasstewut tthu quyupleynuhw, xaatth’ustum ni’ ’u tthu pipu.
    1. Cantaloupe filled with ice cream they fed me, Quyupleynuhw, and took a picture for the paper.
  75. nem’ ’u kwthu xut’ustum’ Beacon Hill Park.
    1. They brought us to [the place called] Beacon Hill Park.
  76. ’amustalum, ’amustum tthu quyupleynuhw, ’u tthu pipu, ’amustum ’u tthu shuptun, ’uhwiin’ shuptun.
    1. They gave me, Quyupleynuhw, a certificate and a knife, a small knife.
  77. ’amustum lhu nu ten ’u little medal.
    1. They also gave my mother a little medal.
  78. suw’ t’ukw’stalum.
    1. They then brought us back home.
  79. qux ice cream ’ula’ulhstum ’u thu pout.
    1. They brought a lot of ice cream on the boat.
  80. suw’ hun’umut, mukw’ lhwet ’uw’ lhice cream.
    1. We arrived home, and everyone had ice cream.
  81. suw’ hay.
    1. The end.
  82. pipu
    1. newspaper
  83. Indian Boy eats his first ice cream.
  84. That is the end of my story.
  85. quyupleynuhw signing off.