Evening star., 1899-04-08

especially valuable for hauling PURPOSES.
and of a better favor as article of diet
in time of famine. OF sealsllins, foxskins,
bearskns, raw eiderdown, feathers, whale
bone, narwhal ivory and reindeer hides he
has enough to keep him in plenty for some
years.
But 1T is in wives that he is considered
richest. In his home igloo up on the west
err shore of Baffin bay he has ten all
particularly strong of jaw, and able to
keep kor-ko-ya's stock of clothing ever
soft and pliabe. The importance of this
will be understood when the Eskimo Gus
tom of chewing skins is understood.
His Strone-Jawed Wives.
Up in the polar circle, where a mans
blood freezes, and parts of him drop off at
the touch of the icy blast, it is a difficult
matter to keep the untanned skins from
hardening and cracking. There is only one
process known to the Eskimo, that of
chewing. 1t is necessary to perform this
operation every two or three months, and
1t is part of the wives duties. 1t is for
that reason that Eskimo selects his
future helpmates not for beauty, conlef
ness of figure. nor for gentleness of dis
position, but for the size Of their teeth and
the strength Of their jaws.
Wives are bought, sold and exchanged
among the Eskimos. The price fuctuates
like that of wheat or corn, OF stocks on
Wall street. A father with a grown daugh-
ter will be approached by neighbor and
offered one, two or three dogs for her, ac-
cording to her maxillaIy powers. Some
times a blue foxskin or q dozen strips of
blubber may enter into the bargain, but
dogs are generally the factor used.
From this 1t can be seen that kor-ko-ya's
plurality Of wives is considered proof of his
wealth among his friends. There are other
evidences which will be described later.
A Thrifty Youth.
Kor-ko-ya was born in 1S41, at a small
what is now the Danish town of Juliane-
haab, in Greenland. He left his home at
an early age and crossed Baffin bay, max
ing his igloo with another tribe famous as
hunters Of seal. He was known to some Of
the early explorers, and acted as head
guide and chief teamsman to them.
He attracted notice even in his teens as
thrifty youth, and from that time became
prominent among the Eskimo. Saving is
an unknown art to the Indians of the arctic
regions, and 1t is seldom they accumulate
enough to last them throughout the long
winter. Certain rules of the tribes make it
incumbent upon them to help their needy
neighbors, and for that reason the indi-
vidual members neglect to lay by stores for
the morrow.
Kor-ko-ya became an exception. He was
a skilful hunter and shrewd trader and,
before he was twenty, his main igloo be-
came the center of the village, in regard to
fittings and attractiveness. The tribe to
which he had attached himself was one of
the largest and most influential Of that part
of the country, and by his twenty-fifth year
Kor-ko-ya was recognized as the head of
it. 1t Is said that men came 200 miles to
consult him in affairs of the chase and
trade.
Lawyer and Weather Prophet.
His method of giving advice was charac-
terisuc of him. He charged for his ser
vices, and graded his schedule of fees very
like that Of lawyer in a civilized eommun-
ity. In that he was wise several hundred
years beyond his generation; his neighbors,
and men of other tribes, worked for nothing
and then stole as a recompense.
Kor-ko-ya asked two foxskins for fore
telling the weather during the long sleep.
He demanded pay in advance, and if he
said the ice would break early and it did
not, he would meet the Questioners with
this simple truth:
"Kor-ko-ya told what was in his knowl-
edge, but he could not tell the doings of
Kokoia, the great sea-woman, who passeth
all understanding. She held the ice after 1t
was ready to break"
If persistence was shown he would silent
ly offer to return the foxskins. They were
never taken, because to incur the displeas-
ure of Kor-ko-ya meant trouble and trouble
show that the willy Eskimo was only follow
ing the practices Of men below the ice belt
Whalers have been known to refer to Kor-
ko-ya as that Eskimo boss"
Be that as 1t may the fact remains that
Kor-ko-ya waxed rich as the years passed
To comfortably house his wives, his dogs
and his possessions during the great cold
each winter requires an igloo of greater
huts -se
Like the wealthy men Of other clines who
AAve ssen their fortunes grow, he was con-