the prejudice that only uncultivated land could be Indian land, and in many places refused to add garden land to the reservations. Societies and hierarchies Around 1800 the social hierarchy of the coast Salish was clearly more pronounced than in the hinterland. In doing so, it in turn became more rigid from south to north. In addition to the leadership group, which had the resources, there were the simple tribesmen and slaves. Nothing escaped the concept of ownership. Thus, not only objects, houses and people could be property, but also fishing places for salmon, as generally places, rituals and ceremonies, songs and stories, which by all means not everyone was allowed to know. War was therefore above all a means of acquiring wealth, for example in the form of slaves, who created and maintained the means of living for the upper class. Nevertheless, they lived under the same roof with their owners. In addition, they were able to acquire spiritual power. Sometimes large settlements existed with more than a thousand inhabitants. The houses were usually inhabited by several families, which had a common, but divided household. These houses were decorated with symbols, such as totem poles and painted house walls. Equally famous are the masks of the coastal peoples. Often the lineages traced themselves back to a common ancestor, who in turn appears in the ritual objects. Society was thus organized according to this particular type of family, not primarily by tribe. Thus, kinship relations determined the family-bound dialect, but also who worked together, who shared resources. This kinship extended far beyond the local house group and village into other communities. The village, on the other hand, played a role in certain types of ceremonies. However, while Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian are described as matrilineal, among the Wakashan and Salish, two-line kinship prevailed through father and mother alike. Heredity did not prevail among the coastal Salish. Among all Salish, the levirate (a male member of the deceased man's family marries his widow) and the sororat (a female member marries the corresponding widower) was common to secure relations between groups related by marriage. Kinship relationships were always bipartite, and marrying blood relatives was subject to prohibitions. These extensive kinships were extremely important. Local relationships also existed in the family, the household, the local group, and the winter village. The extended family remains an important emotional and economic base to this day.