The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1885-03-12
Eskimo Baby-Life.

When a baby Eskimo's mother
makes the hood for her reindeer suit,
she stretches it into long sack or bag,
that hangs down behind and is sup
ported by her shoulders. and this bag
of renders skin is his cradle and
home, where he lives until he knows
how to walk, when he gets his own first
suit of clothing.
This, however, is while the baby
Eskimo is out-of-doors or his mother is
making a social visit. When at his
own home, in order not to trouble his
mother while she is sewing or cooking
Or doing such other work, the little
baby is allowed to roll around almost
without clothing, among the reindeer
skins that make the bed, where it
amuses itself with anything it can lay
its hands on, from a hatchet to a snow
stick
You doubtless think little Boreas
should have nice time rolling around
to his hearts content on the soft, warm
reindeer skins; but when | tell YOU
more about his little home, you may
not then think so. For his aCinter home
is built of snotC.
''But won't the snow melt and the
house tumble in P'' you will ask. Of
course 1t will, if you get it warmer than
just the GOODNESS at which water freezes;
but during the greater part of the year
it is so cold that the snow will not melt,
even when the Eskimo burn fires in
their stone lamps inside these snow
houses; so by closely regulating the
amount of the fire, they can Just keep
the snow from melting. In short. it
must always be cold enough in their
home to freeze.
So you can see that the little Eskimo
cannot have such very nice time, and
you can't see how in the world he can
be almost naked nearly all day long
when it is so cold. But such is the fact
Yet, in spite of all this, the little
fellow really enjoys himself. He gets
used to the cold, and has great fun
frolicking around on the reindeer skins
and playing with his toys; and when |
have told you some other stories about
the cold these little folks can endure,
you can understand how they can en-
joy themselves in the snow huts, or
igioOS, as they call them, when it is only
a little colder than freezing.
At times, the ire will get too warm
in the snow house, and then the ceiling
will commence melting, for you all
perhaps have learned at school that
when a room becomes warmer it is
warmer at the ceiling and cooler near
the floor. SO with the hut of snow: it
commences melting at the top because
1t is warmer there, and when two or
three drops of cold water have fallen
on the baby's bare shoulders, his father
or mother finds that it is getting too
warm, and cuts down the fire
When the water commences drop
ping, the mother will often take a snow
ball from the floor, where it is colder
than freezing, and stick it against the
point where the water is dripping.
There it freezes fast and soaks up the
water just like sponge until it be-
comes full; and then she removes it aud
puts on another, as soon as it COM
mences to drip again. Sometimes she
will forget to remove it, and when it
gets soaked and heavy with water and
warm enough to lose its freezing hold,
down it comes! perhaps right on tho
baby's bare back, where it fiattens out
like slushy pancake.-or into his face,
as it once served me.--From "Chtidren
Of the COid," by Lieut.. Frederick
SchWatta, IN ST. Nicholas for March.