The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1892-01-25

rapidly the movements OF the rlRnL
hand grasping the knife, and by q series OF
quick blows every few inches runs the cut
snow into the chinks and creylces between
the snow blocks. Along this horizontal
courses tho builders first need not be kept
SO busy, for the cut snow falls in between
tho blocks aud can be crammed IN at
pleasure, but on the vertical courses this
hand must keep up with the other and 5end
every fstful into its appointed place the n
slant it ia cut. If the weather ls not very
cold, that is. below forty degrees
complete when the chinking is finished,
but if below that temperature. or II
a stiff breeze is blowing, which makes
it appear colder. a banking of loose snow
ID thrown over the dome, covering 1T com
pletely for q foot or two. This snow IS
far from being alright, even in the solld
blocks of which the house is built. 1t will
admit air quite as readily as white lump
sugar will in the mouth of a boy; and
evary small urchin in tho country knows
low easily this can be done. This slow
pernention of the atmosphere through their
porous walls is the main source of the ven
tilution in these snoW-huts, a source OF air
which is quite ample during most OF the
time. Certainly they ars not like the al
most dramatically sealed abodes tIat most
people suppose. The only means OF heat
lng them is with the little stove lamp,
over which the food is cooked and the SKINS
dried. Should the heat from the little
stove lamp make it too warm inside, that
ie, raise the temperature above freezing,
top aud cuts it's way Though the
loose snow tina chinks the
highest blocks. and plenty of cold air pours
in as II result. When the OCCUPANTS have
had enough of this the holes are stopped
up with fresh snow taken from the floor,
and rs it is in a temperature far below
freezing it adhsres to the melting snow st
once, and forms an icy mortar for the lat
ter. At night time, when the little lamp
goes out and it grows much colder in the
igioos, all these water-soaked snow-blocks
become converted into ice, and the repeated
f~reazings and thawlngs soon onver thu
whole top of the snow house into q trans
lucent mass of ice, which becomes uncom-
fortably chilly at night, ice being u good
conductor Of cold, while snow is not. As a
rule, the ever-moving Eskimo does not re-
side long in the same igloo. not over a
month or Six weeks, unless he is where he
can blank" his dwelling SO deep that the
snow cannot be converted into ice.
The more permanent snow-houses are Of
ten arranged in groups of two, three, o.
even four houses, facing Il common central
one devoid of the gnoW-bed, but having the
common door or ~pasSagsway through which
all occupants must come and 60. These
groupings mean that tho occupants are all
closely related. Whenever any meeting of
unusual i'm portance is held in the village
one Of these large central houses ia q generally
used az giving edmittance to the greatest
number. Here they hold their singings and
exhibitions OF medicine men and their moro
importants feasts. These central igloos
seem quite spacious inside. for instead of
communicating by this low doors, they are
connected by high groined arches, 30 that
| a person can pass freely from one to an
other without even STOPPING. An Eskimo
never starts out on his travels without a
snow-shovel and snow-knife. The snow
shovel is made OF pieces of wooden
boards, the largest they can obtain,
reindeer sinew, and the handle in the center
made OF a piece of carved musk-ox norm.
The inner edge of the shovel would soon
wear off were it not protected by the Tough
est part Of RENDERS horn. The knives
with which they cut the blocks of snow are
like long-bladed butcher knives, with han
dies of bono or 700 long enough to be
graspsd firmly with both hands. Some
times they use a aaw, when they can OBJ
tam one by trading with the whalers.
spent one winter travelling in tho Arctic,
and thus had q pretty fair opportunity OF
seeing these snow houses built by my ma.
tive allies, and az a result of that | would
say that the constructors were usually
about an hour III making IN igloo, ant
about another hour in cutting through the
thick ice on some lake near by for water
and unloading the sledgcs and preparing
supper. In short, about two hours ufte,
stopping on a journey we could depend or
being as comfortable in our homes of SNOW
as though We had never moved.
FREDERICK S%CnwATKA.
Copyright,