The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1916-11-14
STRANGE CUSTOMS
Of ALASKA ESK|MOS
Unique Methods of Rearing
Children, Courtship
and Marriage
MEDICAL OBSERVER
MAKES HIS REPORT
The Feast to the Dead Is an Elaborate
Ceremony and Is Held Annually to
Prevent Destitution Among the
Shades.


Prevent Destitution Among the
Shades.
The special correspondent of The
Medical Record in Alaska has written
an interesting letter describing some of
the unique customs of the native Eski-
mos. He tells of the early life of the
children, the methods of carrying on
courtship and the subsequent marriages,
and also the homage paid to the dead in
the form of an annual feast. Very few
Of the intimate details of these customs
have heretofore reached the outside
world.
"Some of the Eskimo thoughts are
very beautiful he writes, ''as for
example The Feast of the Dead and
some of their acts are strange and very
unnatural, even i'll comparison with
those of the lower animals. A good
example Of the latter is the care of
their children.
The newborn babe may or NAV not
be wanted. Formerly it was the custom
to kill many of the female babies, as
they We're considered food consumers
and IN return produced nothing. If it
is decided to kill the female baby il is
taken out on the tundra, or far out ON
the ice, the mouth filed with snow.
and left there to freeze to death. IT was
the custom to kill these females at any
time up to the age of ) years if it was
decided that the child was a burden.
rms custom fortunately seems to be
passing away, and certainly is not toll
Grated where there are civil authori-
ties.
THE baby is named. If born in a
village the child is given the name of
the last person who died there. In do
ing this they believe that the spirit of
the dead person leaves the grave and
enters the child. 1t now behooves the
relatives of the dead person to con
tribute to the support of the infant as
VIII he spoken of i'll describing the
Feast of the Dead. The Eskimo be-
lleVeS that spirits or shades tmapunu-
max, as he calls Them preside over
everything, and believing this he makes
every attempt to avoid offending them
as the shade would bring disease upon
HIM, make him have bad luck with
the seal, tomcod, white whales. etc For
the same reason the native never nm
lshes child after it is named until the
child IS large enough to care for itself
Al tins time the spirit of the dead
ceases 10 act as protectOrate, so in
SlaPplng child about the age of II
they VIII not offend the shade. If the
Daby IS born in camp it is named for
the hrst object the mother sees after
MS birth, as, for example, a tree, noun
tain, etc.
" Apparently the Eskimo care very
little for their young. They are trans.
ported in the hood of their mother
parka, and it is a common sight to 500
the Chlid nose bleeding from striking
us mead against the neck of the
noIher. The mother usually nurses
the enid until 1t is about three or four
years OF age, and one will sometimes
see mother nursing both baby and
a tWo-year-old child. They nurse their
young until the young can eat raw tom.
cod or dried salmon fish and son seal
OIL with their fingers
Another example to show how little
they care for their young. A midwife
VIII sometimes see a baby that sba
would like to have; if so, she will put i
under her parka and carry it away. ro.
gardless of how it is to be fed. Ante.
so!uck, 'Cyndrock Mary, the Reindeer
queen, was the midwife for a souaw
al 1t. Michael and took quite a fancy
to the baby. The following day She
wrapped it up and packed the baby
| SIXTY miles by dog team to Unalakleef
with the weather below zero, and raised
the child. This is permissible with the
native.
When the Eskimo sees a girl that
he desires to marry he tells his father
who IN turn has an interview with the
girl $ father. If the match is approved
OF the young man puts on the very
finest clothing that he can get and goes
to call. He also takes the finest snit
OF clothing he can get for the girl, and
she dresses up in it. Then they are
man and wife according to the native
belief. If there are no children in one
OF either of the parents families the
newly,married couple goes to live with
that family
Child betrothals are common and