The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1905-01-20

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In winter the Point Barrow children
have a SNOWFALL game which they
play with their feet. They wet some
snow and make a ball about as big
as two fists The cold is so intense
that the ball Immediately becomes
solid ice.
Then the player balances the ball on
the toes of one foot and with kick
and jump throws it to the other
foot, which catches it and throws 1t
back Some of the players are so ex-
pert that they will keep this up for
a number Of strokes without letting
the ball fall to the ground.
The children of this tip-end of
Uncle Sans land also amuse them
selves in winter by sliding down the
steep banks of frozen snow which form
under the cliffs along the shores of
the frozen sea. They use no sleds
or tobcggans, not even boards, in this
sport, but slide down the steep declivi-
ties on their knees.
Kneeling down and sitting well back,
with their hands grasping their ankles,
they go shooting along down great
steep hills OF snow, laughing and
shouting, and now and then losing
their balance and getting tumble
which sends them rolling in heap to
the foot of the snow hill.
Both boys and girls at Point Barrow
are fond of playing football, but they
seem to have no order or system. They
simply get an old mitten or old boot,
and stuff it with bits OF waste deer
skin or rags, and then kick it about
with merry shouts and in great con-
fusion.
The children are very fond Of dam
cling, and if they can get hold of an
old tin can which some whaler has left
they are happy Beating the tin can
for drum, they improvise dances for
themselves and invent songs to accom-
pany them.
The little Esquimaux of Point Bar
row have a most mischievous little in
strument which they call a "mitigli-
gaun." 1t is to the Esquimaux boy
what the bean snapper is to the white
boy.
1t is made of a piece of stiff whale
bone about five inches long and half
an inch wide. 1t is narrowed off and
bent up for about an inch at one end.
On the upper side of this bent-up
end is little hollow large enough to
hold a small pebble, and the other end
is cut into sharp teeth This is purely
an instrument of mischief, and many
a little Esquimau boy is compelled to
retire with his mother into one of their
snow huts for painful interview be-
cause of the reckless manner in which
he uses his pebble snapper.
The children who frolic by the
shores of the frozen sea and dance with
p the Northern Lights even have me-
chanical toys among their playthings.
One is wooden doll representing a
man dressed in skins.
He holds a drum in one hand and
stick in the other. The arms are
made CT whalebone, and by pressing
them together at the shoulders the
inquire Call U0 mdue W uONe do Al
beating the drum
The nthey have little toy kaiaks,
or canoeos, in which are seated dolls
with paddles in their hands. BY pull
ing string the doll is made to move
its head from side to side and make
a motion as if padding.
The girls are fond of playing cats
cradle. Two little girls will sit in one
of the underground houses, or in one
of the huts made of frozen snow, and
by the light of stCne lamp, led by
seal oil, will play at this game for
hours, making all sorts of complicated
figures with the string.
The favorite figure, and difficult
one, is the representation Of reindeer
which, by moving the fingers, is made
to run down hill from enc hand to the
other.
Lieutenant Ray, who was in charge
of the Government station at Point
Barrow says that the children are so
polite that they would take pains to
mispronounce native words in the same
way as he did so as not to hurt his
feelings by appearing to correct him
bluntly.-N. Y. Sun.