The Lebanon express. (Lebanon, Linn County, Or.) 1887-1898, 1891-10-16
AfJpsoN's BAY PEOPLE.
Family Life Of the Eskimo Who Dwell
Near the Great Inland Ocean,

EAmtly Lie OF tHb EbkfHO VINO UWeh
Near the Great Inland Ocean.
In the summer each family has its
own home, but in winter two or more
families live together for the sake of in
creased warmth and economy Of fuel.
The summer residence is tent made of
sealskins with the hair scraped off, giving
much the appearance of yellowish parch-
ment, which is stretched over poles of
driftwood arranged in the ordinary cone
shape. The door always faces toward
the water by whose side they are camped,
and at the opposite side Of the tent is the
bed, composed OF moss covered with
seaIsl1n. As they sleep with head point
ing doorward, they necessarily lie down
hill, owing to the natural slope of the
land toward the shore. This does not
seem either a comfortable or healthy po
sition, but apparently they are none the
worse for it. On either side Of the door
way is their larder, consisting of exceed
+, ingly repulsive looking piles Of seal meat
and blubber, which give forth an odor
that Samson himself, with his hair at its
4 longest. could hardly wrestle with sue
cessfully, 50 overwhelming is its strength.
The winter habitations are made en-
tirely Of snow, and are generally built
under the shelterng lee of rock, in the
| drift that acclimulates there. The build
ers begin by marking out on the snow
circle about fifteen feet in diameter,
which represents the inner side Of the
walls, and with a saw or long bladed
knife they cut out blocks of snow, from
three to six feet long by foot thick and
high, from inside the circle they have
marked; then, placing the blocks around
the circle, they carry the walls up spir-
ally mot in tiers, until they meet in
keystone above at distance Of about
nine feet from the excavated level Of the
floor. The result is, except, Of course, as
to color, the production Of gigantic bee
hive, over the door or in the center Of the
roof Of which is set big block of fresh
water ice to serve the purpose Of win
dow in lighting an interior that, although
! stainless white at first, is soon blackened
by the ever smoking, evil smelling lamps
, the inmates use.
) The furniture of these human hives is
very simple, as may be readily supposed.
3 1t consists Of bed place or divan along
Z the side of the 'igloo, opposite the door,
3 and two fireplaces, one on either hand as
4 you enter. These are made of firmly
4 packed snow, and raised about three feet
!. above the floor, the divan having its
outer edge faced with pole to prevent
O it from crumbling away when used as a
Z seat in the day time. The beds are made
= up in the following manner; First, a
i layer Of moss spread over the snow; next
!. layer Of sealskins; then layer Of beai
"a or deersliins, and finally the sleeping
n bags, which resemble exaggerated pillow
i slips, only that fur takes the place O.
10 linen, and the fur is double, SO that ther
m may be hair both inside and outside
nt Into these bags, Of which each adult ha
Of one, the Eskimo stripped to the bar
buff, creeps for the night, am
4. sleeps very comfortably. Up to tn
! age Of 10 the children share thei
/, parents bag; after that they are pre-
et NOTED to having one Of their own
5e Their fires are nothing more tha
40 lamps rudely fashioned out Of soapstone
Il and so arranged as TO be self-supplying,
he mass OF blubber being hung in such clos
nd proximity to The fame that the fat
converted into oil, which, dripping int
m. the bowl below, is consumed by meal
n of moss wick. As the lamp has 4
,r. chimney. and both oil and wick are ,
X the poorest, the result is the reverse I
ng brilliant, neither light nor heat beng ol
,ot tanned in what we would consider
AZ satisfactory quantity. just abo'
ast the lamps a sealskin is stretched
rs. prevent the heat thawing the roof ava
,ty precaution that seems hardly necessar
ab. seeing that the ordinary temperature
N. these snow huts is ~ degs. at the TO
aud "a degs. at the level Of the beds;
or other words, from . to degs. belo
pal freezing point.
r. In order to keep out as much cold
hey possible, the doorways are very low al
,w narrow, a fact which explains the curio
! phrase with which the hosts speed tn
ical parting guests, namely; 'Tabourke ap
MAX in att THAT is: "Good-by; do
dee bump your head. n-J. Macdonald Ok
ihe in American Magazine.
den