Washington sentinel. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1853-1856, 1855-10-16
THE ARCTIC EXPEDITION.


lative to the expedition fitted out for exploring
the Arctic seas also the official report of DR. Kane
The habits and manners of the Esquimaux, as
written out by the reporter Of the Herald, viii
be found of thrilling interest:
The Esquimaux Indians and their Habits
OF Life-Curious Hospitality OF their
Women-pIore Interesting Particulars.
The first time that the party came in connec-
ton with the Esquimaux was III March, 1894,
about the time when the long winter night comes
TO close, and when there are two or three hours
of natural light in the twenty-iour. The ship
was visited by nine of these Indians, each driving
sledge Ivy eight or ten Esquimaux dogs. These
sedges are of peculiar construction. They
are between for and FIVE feet long and fourteen
inches wide. The body is made of pieces of the
walrus ttisks and of the horn of the narvahl
or unicorn, cut into pieces of about an inch long,
and lashed together by snews. The runners are
faced with the ivory of the narvahl's horn. The
Esquimaux are very ingenious, and manage TO
bore holes by means of drill worked IN hole
in the front tooth. The sledges thus, on ac-
count of the labor bestowed on them, very valu-
able, and are bequeathed from father TO son as
most precious legacy. Ii is no uncommon cir
cumstance, when the community want TO get rid
| of bad and lazy member who has a good sledge
and team Of dogs, TO induce him to go out on
! hunting expedition, and when at great dis
| him.
| These Indians who visited the Advance-had
| some walrus meat to dispose OF, which they did
for jacknives. They were, however, very shy
| and timd; but DIR. Kane and Mr. Peterson, the
| interpreter, went out to meet them; and at length
| overcame their timidity, and induced them to
| come on board
The Esquimaux settlements SEINE forty
miles apart, and generally consist of but two
three huts, containing population OF some eigh-
| teen or twenty. These huts are generally built
| of massive stones, some of them several tons
weight, and it is a matter of surprise how they
| could have possibly got them up Like the
/ slcdges, the huts are handed down most valua-
| BILE property Some of them have been seen built
| of whalebone--probably from fish taken by
them after being killed by whalers. In summer
| they form tents of skins, and, at pinch, of
snow. They are hospitable, and fond of visiting,
and so these settlements keep up an interchange
| of communication and live very happily Their
huts are heated by means of stone lamps, cut by
| themselves out of sort of soapstone, fed with
blubber, with wick of ground moss. By this
means they manage to keep up temperature OF
sixty degrees Fahrenheit, while temperature out
Of doors is many degrees below They
usually eat raw meats-the flesh of walrus and
seal; but when they do cook anything make
any soup-which they make very good-it is by
means of these lamps.
Their sleeping places platforms, built Of
stone, raised some eighteen inches from the floor
so as To keep in the warm atmosphere-and
covered with grass taken from islands at dis
lance Their clothing consists of fox skin jump
ers coat with an inner jumper of bird skin, the
| feathers inward; bear skin trowsers, bear skin
| boots, and bear skin gloves. The dress of the
women is similar to that of the men, except that
| the former wear boots extending half way up the
| thigh, while those of the men do not extend to
the knee; and that the ladies also wear a sack to
their hoods, which they call nessak, in which they
n : C.
| size and stoutly built, while the women are of
smaller stature and slghter. They do not prac-
tice the Mormon habits of polygamy, but are, on
| the contrary, extremely particular about their
matrimonial relations. This has been the uni
versal teNimony of travellers who have visited
them. As with all savage nations, the onus of
| the labor devolves upon the women. The men
come in from the hunt throw down the prey they
| have secured, walrus or seal, and the women
| have then to 30 TO work, skin the animals, pre-
pare the flesh for food, extract the bones and pre-
pare the sinews for sewing purposes. One OF the
ordinary acts of hospitality civiity on the part
OF the ladies is to take fowl or piece OF meat,
chew it up very nicely and hand it to the vsiter,
who is expected to be overcome with gratitude
| and to finish the operation of chewing. Ii would
give them dire offence if there should be any fail
ure TO do due honor TO this act of hospitality. In
all other respects they exercise TO remarkable
degree the same virtue. The Esquimaux of the
Northern regions profess TO have dread of going
to the Danish settlements, lest they should be
eaten up by their Southern brethren, while these
last entertain the same dread, and with more rea-
son, Of the Northern tribes. Those tribes, how
ever, which live as high up the expedition pen
etrated seem TO be becoming gradually extin-
gushed, and we understand that DR.. Kane has
formed the philanthropc scheme Of collecting
these people together He proposes, we are told,
to gather them from the most Northern regions
and bring them down TO the Danish settlements,
where they can enjoy more comforts and be sub
iect TO less vicisstudes
The Esquimaux have priest, whom they call
Aniekok, who performs marriages and burial SER
vices, and is supposed TO have some influence
over the heart. When n couple is married, their
friends have imposed upon them, for certain
length of time, abstinence from certain kinds OF
meats; and when a young man or young woman
dies, all the young men and young women Of the
settlement are condemned 10 the same sort of abb
stinence. The priest is believed 10 have power
over the walrus and seal, and in a time of pres
sing scarcity TO be able TO call them up to the sur
face Of the water. Their faith in the Anlekek IS
the only approach they have 60 religious belief.
They spend their long winter Of four months, total
darkness, in sleeping and eating, never going out
| 10 hunt unless pressed by necessity. They have
no sort Of amusement except singing and an &C
companying motion Of the body, which can hardly
be designated dancing. They do not use tobacco
| in any shape, nor do they smoke any other weed
or root for the purpose Of stmuants, nor would
they allow any smoking in their huts. The chill
dren always get a name selected from whatever
subject happens TO be on the iapis in the paterna
hut when they are born,
In Leavey or Godhaon, island Of Disco, the
population Of $50 or 300 is composed principally
Of Esqsimaux, pure and half blood. They man
age 10 keep up COED deal OF social enjoyment by
means Of dancing, singing and music. They have
peculiarly good ear for music, and can manage
to play on the jewsharp violin any air they
hears The women said 10 be great rogues, If
not in stealing gentlemen's hearts, at least in pill
foring tin pots and plates, and anything Of that
kind. We saw one young gentleman connected
with the expedition, who had no less than three
specimens Of the hair Of young ladies Of Leavely.
One Of them is dark the ravens wing, Of the
slkest texture, and came from the locks Of full
blooded Esqumaux; another Is dark brown, very
fine, and belonged TO a half blood; and the third,
Of golden color, and Of equally fine texture, show
cd Enthusiastically the Danish blood Of the lady's
sire. We presume these love tokens will be duly
treasured, though not in the National Museum
at Washington. This same gentleman has a
quantity Of skins and furs which he has brought
home With him "reminiscences Of Greenland.
| But they will have to be fumgated or TO undergo