The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1885-06-26

creased proportionally. Occasionally
my sledge would be in the rear, and
before we started in the morning it
would sometimes be useful to know if
the party ahead had moved or, and
Toolooah, my sledge driver, would
climb near hill, and if the weather
was intensely cold and clear was al
most sure to be able TO tell me, although
the measured sledge journey to the
snow house that had discerned by its
ascending vapors was often eight and
ten niles, and probably three fourths as
much in straight line.
Whenever the sledge was travelling
along, its iced runners dragging over
the fine, gritty SHOWS would give forth
clear musical ring in the bitter cold
air that sounded very much like the
drawing of a resined bow over tun.
ing-fork, a well.known experiment in
acoustic lectures. Many of my readers
who live, or have lived, in countries
where the thermometer gets down to
zero and twenty degrees below in the
winter have heard this sound coming
from the iron running sleighs, and es
pecially upon clear quiet night with
but a single bell within hearing, Could
you imagine that clear, frosty ring as
much louder as the whistle of a steam
boat is above the whistle of man, oil
certainly multiplied manifold times
you could realize how the iced sledge
runners fairly sing with their polished
surface dragging over the marble-like
SHOWS of intense Arctic cold. BY hold
ing the ear near the snow this music OF
the cold can be heard a couple of mile:
away, and at this great distance sounds
like the soft murmurings of an E)
lian harp or distant minglings of gni
tars.
Sometimes when breathing this ex
tremely cold air my tongue felt as if i
was freezing in my mouth, but coult
readily rid myself of this uncomfort
able feeling by breathing through tn
nostrils for minute or two. Natur
ally you will ask {: "Why not breath
through the nostrils at the time ?" a
you have so often heard advocated
This bitter cold air passing through tn
nostrils keeps up an irritation so tha
the consequent catarrh makes it desir
able to use the mouth nearly altogethe
in breathing. Also the nose is NOR
liable to freeze when breathing throug
it. These freezings of the nose an
cheeks are very common affairs, occur
ring over dozen times a day in yer
low temperature, ,and especially if ther
be any wind blowing in the face. Th
Esquimaux cures these slight fros
bites by applying the hand, warm fror
the reindeer mitten, to the spot. The
knew nothing of rubbing frost bite
with snow, so extolled in our own col
climates, and | doubt its efficacy my
self in those extremely low Arctic ten
peratures, when the snow is like san
if loose and like granite rock if il
mass. Another fallacious idea exploC
ed by my Esquimaux,a ,at least to gres
extent, was the use of snow to quenC
thirst, which every Arctic writer hi
t been so unanimous in condemniDg
t hurtful. My Esquimaux used it at a
: temperatures to alleviate their thirs
first breathing on the piece of snow
few times before putting it in Il
- mouth. have often seen Esquima
1 boys place steel snow knife to the
? tongue and let it freeze fast, and the
a swing it backward and forward unit
$ it fell, and try to make it stick u
= right in the snow.-Frederich SchcO
a la.