, 1875-02-06
The EsklmOs.

alous race Of America-the only people
Of the new world clearly Identical with
any race Of the old Then they are the
most literal people in the world. The
lIuesl extent Of their occupancy, all oi
II a narrow seabOaTd averaging scarcely
one hundred miles in width, Is estimated
st not less than I'VE thousand miles. Be
fore them is a vast, unknown, icy ocean
upon which they scarcely dare venture
beyond sight Of land; behind them, hos
tile mountaineers ever ready 70 dispute
cncToaChmcnt. Their very molher-earth,
upon whose cold bosom they have heen
hurne aye after aye through countless
generations, is almost lmpenctrahlc,
thawlcss ice. Their days and nights
and seasons and years are not like those
of other men. Six months of day sue
cced SiN months of night Three months
OF sunless winter: three months OF night
less summer; six months Of glmmerlnS
twilight.
About the middle Of October com
mcnces the long night of winter. The
earth and sea put on an icy covering:
| beasts and birds depart for regions Shcl-
| tered or more congcnial; humanity hud-
| NlfN III HlNltll AllfAlLN w is A44 AAsAA III
| sinks into rcpOSe. The little heat left by
| the rctTcdting sun soon TadIJtcS out INTO
| the deep blue realms of space; the TEN
| perature sinks rapidly 10 forty or fifty
| degrees below freezing; The air Is hushed
| the ocean calm. the sky ClOUdleSS. An
| awful, painful stiffness pervades the
| drcaTy solitude. Not a sound is heard /;
the distant din of busy man and the
| nOiSclesS hum of the wilderness alike ar
| wanting. Whispers become audible AT 4
| considerable distance, and an inSuppOrt-
| able sense Of loneliness OppTcSSrS the
| inexperienced visitor Occasionally the
| aurora bUrealiS flashes out in priSmatic
| curuScationS, throwing a brilliant arch
| from east To west-n0w in varicgated OS-
| citations, graduating through the yari-
| Gus lintS of blue and green and violet
and crimson daIling, flashing or stream
ing in yellow columns upward, down
| ward, now blazing steadily, now in
| wayY uudulatiOnS, sometimes up To the
very zenith; mOmentarily lighting up in
| majestic grandeur the cherries frozen
scenery, but only to fan back with eX-
| hauSlcd force, leaving denSer obScurity
| Natures electric lantern, suspended for
| a time in the frosty vault of heaven
| munifiCcnt natures fireworks; with the
polar bear and the polar man spectators
In january the brillianCy OF the stars
is dimmcd pcrceptibly at noon; in Feb
'uary a golden tint rests upon the hOri-
| 2on at the same hour; in March the in
| Cipicnt dawn bIoadenS; in April the
| doing Eskimo rubS his eyes and crawls
forth; in May the snow begins 10 melt,
| the impatient grass and flowers arrive as
il departs. In June the summer has
| fairly come. Under the inCcSsaut rays
of the ncver-setting sun the snow speed
| lily disappears, the ice breaks UP, the
glacial earth Sottcns for a depth of one,
| twO or three feet; circulation is restored
| 10 vegetation. which, during winter, has
| been Stoppcd-if We believe John Rich
| ardSon, even the largest trees freezing to
the heart. Sea, and plain, and rolling
Stcppc lay aside their seamless ShTOud of
| white and brilliant tint of emerald
| OycrsprcadS the landscape All nature
| With ope resounding cry, leaps up and
clapS her hands for Joy FlOckS Of birds,
| lured from their winter homes, fiji the
air with their melody; myTiadS of wild
| fowls send forth their shrill cries; the
| moose and the reindeer flock down from
| the forests; from the resonant sea comes
the noise of Sp0uting whales and bark
| ing seals, and this SO lately dismal, cheer
| less region blooms with AN eX-
uberanca of life equaled only by the
| shOrtncSs of its duration. And in token
Of Just appreciation of the Creators
goodness, this animated medley-man.
| and beasts, and birds, and tishcS-riscs
| up, divides, falls 10, and ends in eating
! or in being eaten.
The physical characteristics of the
EskimOS are: \ fair complexion. the skin.
when free from dirt and paint, being al
! most white; a medium stature, well pro
portioned, thiCk-sCt, muscular, robust,
active, with small and beautifully shaped
hands and feet; pyramidal head; a
broad, egg shaped face; high, rounded
rheek-bOncS; Hat nose: small, obliQue
eyes; large mouth: teeth regular hut
well worn; coarse black hair, closely cut
upon the crown, leaving a monk-like ring
around the edge, and paucity of beard
The men frequently leave the hair i'm a
natural state. The women of lev Reef
Introduce false hair among their own,
wearing the whole in two immense howS
nj the back of the head At Point Bar
row they separate the hair into two
parts or braidS, saturating it with train
oil and binding it into stiff lunches with
strips of skin. Their lower eXtrcmitics
are short, 50 that in a sittiugpoSturc they
look taller than when standing.
On the northern coast the women
paint the eyebrows and tattoo the chin;
while the men only pierce the lower lin
under one or both corners of the mouth,
and insert in each aperture Il double
headed SlCeve-huttOn or dumb-bcll-
shaped labrct, of bone, ivory, shell. stone.
glass or wood. The inciSion when first
made Is about the size of quill, but ar
the aspirant for improved beauty grows
Older the size of the orifcc is enlarged
until II reaches a width of half or three
quarters of an inch. In tattooing the
color is applied by drawing a thread
under the skin, or picking il in
with 4 needle. Different tribes and
different ranks in the same tribe have
each their peculiar form of tattooing.
The plcbeian female of certain bands Is
permitted to adorn her chin with but one
vertical line in the center and one paral-
lei 10 1t on either side, while the more
fortunate nubleSSc mark two vertical
lines from each corner of the mouth. \
feminine cast of features, as is common
with other branches Of the Mongolian
race, prevails in both sexes. Some
travellers discover in the faces Of the men
characteristic expression of ferociouS-
ness and in those Of the women an ex-
traordinary display Of wantonneSs- \
thick coating Of filth and n strong odor
Of train7oil are inseparable from An
Eskimo, and the fashion Of labretS adds
IN no wise to his comelincsS.
For covering to the body the Eski-
mos employ the skin of all the beasts
and birds that come within their reach
Skins are prepared in the fur, and cut
and SeWtd with DratDeSS and skill Fvpn