The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-07-16
YARN SPUN By a waALER.
How the Quality of Rum is Deter
mined by the EsQuimaux.
From the San Francisco Eramtner.

How the Quality of Rum is Deter
mined by the EsQuimaux.
From the San Francisco E.eamineT.
II see that the United States steamer
Bear is pretty well loaded down for her
ing captain, as he pointed TO the vessel
swinging at anchor in the stream O few
days ago. YES he continued, "she is bound
on a mission that will be of incalculable
service to the whaling ships that are nearly
every year shut in by the ice and crushed
to pieces, leaving their crews to perish, I'M
less by the greatest good luck they are able
to reach the native settlement on the main
land. 1t is many years ago since | retired
from the whaling business, but when / was
engaged in it there was nothing to depend
on i'll case Of losing your vessel but the
EsQuimaux, whom l always found most
willing and ANXIOUS to do all that lay in
their power for white man. There were
some rare characters among them, too, and
they had many curious customs, but were
always, as ! found them, thoroughly honest
"They were great fellows, though, to
drink rum, aud every time they boarded
wheler kept poking around in every ones
way, continually asking for drink. Any
thing that was hot or fiery was, to item,
rum. The more it would burn the better
they liked it. Why, l had one fellow-the
on board my vessel, the Canton Packet.
while we were lying in Plover bay, just
before starting south, and while poking
around he fell through the open hatch into
the hold. He lay just as he fell, and |
thought ne was killed outright had him
lifted on deck and carried into the fore cas-
tie and laid in bunk.
"He was unconscious, and could see the
blood coming to the surface of his body
through bis dirty bruised hide. He had
struck on his right side and legs, and, as l
believed, was almost fattonsd out by the
fall. His squaw, who was on board with
him, came into the forecastle and sat down
on a seaman'S chest in one of the half dark
corners. She covered her face with her
hands and kept rocking back and forth con-
tinually, moaning the while. Walrus
looked like a bad case, but thought l
would try and do something for him as
long as there was any life left. Going to
the medicine case in my cabin | took out a
bottle Of pain-killer and brought it forward
intending to rub the linimeut On Walruss
bruised body. just after entering the fore
castle was suddenly called on deck by the
mate to quel row among the men. left
the pain-kiler, which was as hot and burn
ing as thousand bee stings, on the edge of
n, L
Wairus with tho tears streaming from his
eyes and the empty bottle raised above his
head out Of reach of his squaw, who was
making great fuss trying to get taste
Of the few drops of liniment that remained
in it.
1 jumped forward and, snatching the
bottle, asked Walrus what had become of
the hniment.
'''Heap hot, good rum, like fire. said he
as he rubbed his stomach.
"'Well, you can knock me down if that
cuss hadn't drunk every drop Of it, Why,
a teaspoonful in big glass of water
would be all a white man could stand.
That night Walrus, with his squaw, pulled
ashore in canoe, apparently none the
worse for bis tumble and the bottle of lini-
ment he had drunk.
MANY of the Esquimaux were very
shrewd, though, and knew good from bad
rum. Capt. Richards, now dead, could
have anything he ever wanted from them
because he always gave them pure liquor.
They found out that what he gave was all
right in the following curious manner: One
of the natives had purchased a small key of
rum from Richards one day and shortly
after wards another from some one else. He
wifhed to keep them for the celebration of
the Russian New Year, and 50 buried both
kegs under his hut in the ground. When
the time arrived he dug them up and
opened both. The contents of the keg he
had bought from Richards WAS in good con-
dition, while in the other was large chunk
of ice. The water with which the rum
han been mixed had frozen and betrayed
the fact to the natives, who became very
angry with the party who had soldit From
that time forth Richards owned them and
all they possessed.
There was one of the natives, Old Puz-
Zlebow, as he was called by the whalers,
who was as straightforward and fine "a man
as could be met with anywhere in the world.
he used to come off in his canoe, accom-
panied by his son, to pilot ships through
the shoals and ice into Plover bay. He
was thoroughly acquainted with the north
east coast OF Siberia, and was of the great
est service to the vessels working along the
Asiatic side. Every time l went north
always took along a few presents for him.
The. last time | saw him he came on board
my ship to pilot us to sea on our homewaTd
trip. The Did fellow was getting feeble and
saw it would not be long before he would
have to give up his work. When a native
gets along in years, SO that he is unable to
hunt and furnish his share Of food and nee
essarieS to the settlement, a sort of council
meets to consider his case This council
assemblies once year, and such Of the old
people as are found to pc no longer able to
pAOFAQ0 lOE bHoulSelNt5 dfO OfueI6u W De
sewn up in skins and left out on the hills to
die.
"A hole is dug in the frozen ground large
enough to receive the body, and rocks and
stones are then piled over it to prevent the
bears and wolves from getting at the hqing
occupant and tearing him to pieces.
well, when the Old pilot went over the
side to go ashore in his canoe said: 'Puz-
zlebowb what shall bring to you next sea-
sont Us there not something you would
like? I
Forj a moment the old fellow made no
reply but finally said, as he turned slowly
awayE 'Good-by, captain, there is nothing
that PuZzlebow will ever need again
ihe following year when l entered
Flower bay Puzzlebow's son came aboard to
PILOT US in and asked him for his father.