The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1903-06-07
A Seal Hunt.
,dltor Of children's Page. Times

Editor OF children's Page. Times-Dis-
patch:
wish to join the r. d. c. c.. Club. and
Fend you the following story. entitled A
Seal Hunt:
There was .onece a family OF EsklnoS up
In the northern part of Canada. The lit
Tie snow-house in which they lived was
always close and smoky. from the fat
of the seal which they burned The family
consisted OF two boys and the mother
and father. The oldest of the two boys
was thirteen years old, and named 1ngook.
and the youngest was six, and named
HJorth
There was always great excitement,
among the boys when the time came to
build the new snow-house. which they
did at the beginning of every winter. In
cook and Hjorth would get their little
bono axes and chop the Ice into the right
shaped blocks for building the house. AZ
Ter the boys and their father had finish
ed cutting the ice. Ingook and his father
would build tho house by putting the
blocks OF Ice together. They would al
ways build their new house littlo way
from their old last years house. and use
their last years house for cutting up
and sklnnlng the seals which they
caught
1ngook had often been TO catch seals,
whom the sun had only been up about
three weeks. Hiorth for the FIRST time
went out with HenrikSen. his ia Their, to
catch some seals. III Jorth had his own lit
tie bone spear. Henrlksan had eight dogs
that could run like Santa Claus reindeer.
. They had hitched the dogs In their seal
skin harness. and started off at run.
They had gone about three miles along
frozen stream, looking for the holes
where the seals and walrusses would
come up to breathe Hjorth was the first
one to see seal poke Nip Its head out of
the breathing hole. and as he saw It, he
nudGed his father. He knew what It
meant. because his father. had told him
that IL he saw a seal or n walrus. not to
make any noise. because the slightest
noisc would scare It, Almost at the same
minute Henriksen hurled his spear. and
II hit the seal in the head. He was not
minute too soon!oedther. for. Just as he
threw his spear. a. young dog which he
had traded some furs for. Just short
time before. when he saw tho seal he was
frightened and ran in front Of the leader
OF the dogs Hjorth. who was all this
time watching the seal with great amaze
Inent. now caught hold OF the relns and
gave q hard jerk which nearly jerked
him ont OF the sled But Hjorth had
stopped the dog and Henrksen being
good hand at seal-hunting. plunged for
ward and caught the spear and drew UP
the prize.
AS snon as Henriksen had caught the
spear. he told Htorth to take his axe and
break Ice around the seal. so that he
could draw the seal out through the hole.
As soon as Heprksen had drawn the seal
up out of the hole. there appeared at the
hole the small head Of young seal
Henriksen was busy getting the spear out
OF tho big seal. and did not see the young
one But Hjorth was watching the hole
/. h see IL another one would come up. and
when he saw tho young one. he did not
) p;a!t to tell his father. but plunged HIS lit
8tle spear into the seals head. HJorth
Taught his spear as he had seen his father
so. BY this time. Henriksen had heard the
noise. and let the hig sea! alone and came
to help Hjorth. When they had pulled
the young one up through the hole. and
had taken the spear, out Of him, they
found that tho young one was two and
half feet long. and the old one about six
feet Hjorth thought how glad his mother
would be when he told her that no had
caught n seal
Hcnriksen put the two seals on tho sled,
md drove home. When they got there
the mother and Ingood were delighted
when Hjorth told them that his father
had caught big seal. and that he had
caught young one, The mother seal
was to be used for clothes, fuel, needles,
thread and light. through tho long winter
the skin OF 1t was to be made into
II.
yoryA, ppNArYY,