Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-06-24

probation Of it. The habit Of chewing the
weed seems to be universal. Men. women and
even unweaned children keep quid, often Of
enormous size. constantly in this mouth The
Juice is not spit out. but swallowed with the
saliva, without producing any symptoms Of
nausea.
These people. for the sake Of making their
tobacco go further. cut it up very fine and mix
IL with finely chopped wood. in the proportion
OF about two parts OF tobacco to one of wood
Willow twigs are commonly used for this pur-
pose, possibly because they have a slightly
aromatic favor. The mode Of smoking the
weed thus prepared is very odd. The smoker,
after clearing out the bowl of his pipe with a
little picker of bone. plucks from his deerskln
clothing in some conspicuous place q small wad
of hair. This be rams down to the bottom OF
the bowl. the purpose OF it being to prevent the
fine tobacco from getting into the stem and
clogging il up The pipe il then filed with to-
bacco, of which il only holds n very small guam
tity. The tobacco is then ignited and all OF it
Is smoked ont in two or three strong whiffs.
The smoke il very deeply inhaled and is allowed
to pass out slowly from the month and nostris.
This method OF smoking would be found ex-
ceedingly irving BY any white man. In fact IL
usually brings tears to the ewes Of the Eskimo.
often producing giddIness, and almost always
Q violent fit of coughing native will some
times be almost prossrated from the effects Of
. single pipeful. These people carry their
fondness for tobacco so far that they will
actually eat the foul oily refuse from the
bottom of the bowl. the smallest portion OF
which would produce in q civilized
person This habit has been likewise observed
IN northern Siberia They also eat the tobacco
ashes. perhaps tor the sake Of the potash they
contain
THE FOOD THEY EAT.
These Eskimo depend mainly for food on the
flesh Of the rough seal. They also eat the meat
OF the reindeer. the walrus, the polar bear, the
hnu hale h. rba1a nd
kinds of birds Walrus hide is sometimes
cooked and devoured in times of scarcity. They
regard the epidermis Of whale a great
delicacy and are very fond Of the tough white
gum around the roots Of the whalebone. The
vhaleskin and whalegum are eaten raw. Meat
n sometimes consumed in a raw state, though
generally it is boiled in water over fire Of
driftwood. the broth thus made being drunken
hot before eating the meat. Fish are often
eaten raw in winter at the deer-hunting camps.
When travelling in winter these natives use
FOR food sort OF pemmican. The marrow is
extracted from reindeer bones by boiling. and
TO a quantity Of this is added two or three
pounds Of crushed seal or whale blubber the
mixture being beaten up with the hands in a
large wooden bowl to the consistency of frozen
Cream Into this they stir bits of boiled venison
usually the poorer portions OF the meat scraped
on the bones and cheved up small by the
women and children. each using some charm
word as they cast in their mouthfuls. Finally.
tne mass Is made up into two-pOund balls and
Carried in little seslskin bags. Flour, when
obtained, is made into sort of porridge
There l. always plenty of driftwood to supply
the fires.
When family is fortunate enough to secure
q large supply OF meat, il invites all the neigh
oors to partake until the provisions are ex-
hausted- This habit of hospitality prevents
their laying up any considerable quantity OF
proyender, and they depend for subsistence al
most from day To day on their success In hunt
Ing When encamped in small parties in the
summer. however. thew often take more seals
than they can consume. The carcasses of
these, stripped OF their skins and blubber are
buried IN the gravel close to the camp and ara
dug up and brought home when meat becomes
scarce In winter.
These people consume water in great
Quantities and ike to have it extremely cold.
In the house. IN winter, there is ALWAYS a lump
Of clean snow on a rack close to the family
lamp, with tub to catch the water that drips
from IT. When tramping about thew eat an
astonishing amount of ice and snow. and on the
march the women carry small canteens OF seal
skin, which they I'LL with Snow and keen inside
Of their jackets, where the heat Of the BODY
melts the snow and keeps it liquid This Great
noticed among the Eskimo elsewhere and seem.
to be characteristic OF the race
ANIMALS WHICH TREY HUNT
Among the animals which they hunt. for one
useful purpose or another, is the Arctic fox.
Two species Of iemmingsis known to them. as
Gall by the same name as the largest kind of