The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-12-15

shone brightly and reflected the light from
the snow, ice and rock, the sWarns Of
mosquitoes seemed decidedly out of place
one day we encountered an army of
them. They filled our eyes, ears, nose,
mouth and neck. From them there was
no escape, and we Were obliged to continue
our Investigations for hours surrounded
by these tormentors One of our number
who six weeks before had graduated at
Yale, priding himself on his manly beauty,
now with closed eyes and swollen face
presented the appearance of a prize fight
er, just returned from the field of con-
f1ict. Judging from their number and fe-
rocity of these mosquitoes must have been
the direct descendants Of those found in
the tertiary period and called the culex
damnatOrium.
There are no roads in Greenland, neither
are there any in Venice In the firsl
named country are fjords, the. former
highways of glaciers, extending from the
sea a score of miles inland.
In Venice arms of the sea surround
islands clothed in beauty, while the gon-
doiler decked in varied colors, stands
in his boat, plying his oar as he glides
over the quiet waters, enlivening his la
bors with song. His northern brother,
clothed in fur, sits silently in his kayack,
the cover of which fits tightly around his
waist, plying his paddle and moving swift.
ly over the rough sea, along a bleak and
desOlate coast.
The tabled centaur was half man and
half horse. The real kayacker is half
man and half boat; the boat responding
as readily to his every wish as though il
was composed of flesh and blood, and
part of his veritable self The oomiacr
or woman's boot, is made of sealskin.
drawn tightly over a frame made of whale
or walrus bones One that L measured
was thirty-one feet long, six feet wide
and four and one-half feet deep. They
are always manned by women, and though
not swift, are large and commodious
| The kayaks, on the contrary, contain
but one person, are from sixteen to TWEEN
ty-one feet in length, eighteen inches wide
pointed at each end, and can be made to
move through the water with great swift
ness.
When hunting the seal a tripod is
fastened in front of the kayacker; on this
is placed reel containing a long and
strong cord made of skin and sinew, to
one end of which is fastened the harpoon
and to the other end a large skin bag a S
a float When the harpOOn strikes a seal,
whale or walrus. by an ingenious contriv-
ance the shaft separates from the barb
ana noals away. The shaft being of wood
and therefore more precious than rubies,
is picked up and carefully preserved,
while the float indicates the locality OF
the game.
One day while near the water. a seal
weighing perhaps 500 pounds was brought
in haste and collected around it. One
man jumped on its back, and, plunging a
----~, ,nleW DacK piece of the skin
about a foot square, and, pulling out
hunks of blubber, distributed them among
the crowd.
their mouths till their, cheeks, were enor-
mously distended then with knife cut
off the protruding part close to the lips
and passed il to the next. who repeated
the operation with apparent relish. As
fire is scarce, their food is often eaten
raw and seldom more than half cooked
and as the water is ice cold, they never
battle from the time of their birth to
their departure.
We who have well-warmed bath room
at our command, with large tubs, mar
ble-topPed Washstands and plenty Of
soap and hot water, might justly be
blamed for want of cleanliness, but il
we had been obliged to remain there dur
ing the winter, as one time seemed highly
probable, / fear we would have followed
the EsquimauX custom of amounting our
selves with oil rather than battle in ice
water, which not only cracks the skim
but to many persons is a decidedly dis
agreeably operation.
The rocks of Greenland are principally
Laurentian states and shales, which in
most places have been elevated to a per-
pendicular position. The hills have the
peculiar confirmation that belong to met
amorphic rocks Though cracked and I'M
even, they seem but little worn by the
clements, their tops and edges being sharp
and distinctly outlined. There seemed to
have been no change in color, hardness
or composition since they were uplifted
But little talus or broken rock was found
at the base of cliffs, but sometimes be-
tween the rocks a little soil was found,
with patches of blue and yellow Arctic
flowers. whose petals seemed more glossy
and whose colors We're more vivid than
those In warmer climes.
The sides of the rocks on fjords gave
unmistakable evidence of recent glacial
action, here, by deep, polished grooves
far above our heads, and there by long
moraines of coarse rock fragments. The
view from the high points was wild and
gloomy: no pointed peaks with valleys
between but everywhere wilderness OF
rough, angular masses OF rock. No sign
Of life was visible. not even "a bird or but
terily, a tree or shrub and the silence was
oppressive.
The name Greenland is a misnomer The
wcll-knOwn missionary hymn of Bishop
Hebcr. 'FrOm Grecnlands Icy Noun
tains." gives "a more correct idea of Ibis
country. In 9s6. Erik. the Red. "a banished
Iceland 1arl came 10 this country, and.
wishing 10 form "a settlement, with the ,i-
ccnse granted 20 real estate agents. De-
gave q the attractive name ~ Greenland.
For "a while his settlement houfHifd, hIt
finally sHecumbed 90 peatience and tine
cnmlty ~ the natives.
Greenland Do the perqulsite Of thc KING
Of Denmark. ln former times rcFenle
was derived from sea-. whale ana Wulrps