The sun., 1919-03-16

turns his back to those whom he In
tends to stab from behind.
Before the snowhouse which they
started to build for us Immediately on
our arrival was quite ready for our
occupancy children came running to
announce that their mothers had din
ner ready. The houses were so small
that II was not convenient to invite
all three OF us into the same one TO
eat; besides It was not etiquette to do
so, az we learned later. Each OF US
was. therefore, taken TO a different
place. My host was the seal hunter
whom we had first approached on the
ice His house would, he said, be a
fitting one in which to offer me my
first meal among them, for his wife
had been born further west on the
mainland coast than any one else In
their village, and It was even said that
her ancestors had not belonged orig
inally to their people, but were imn,i-
grants from the westward. She would
therefore, like to ask me questions.
1t turned out, however, that his wife
was not laxative person, but
motherly, kindly and hospitable, like
all her countrywomen. Her first ques-
| lions were not OF the land from which
l came, but OF my footgear. Weren't
my feet Just n little damp, and might
she not pull my boots off for me and
dry them over the lamp? Would 1 moi
put on pair of her husbands dry
| socks, and was there no little hole IT
nv mittens or coat that she COult
mend for me? She had boiled som,
seal meat for me, but she had no
boiled any fat, for she did not know
whether I preferred the blubber boiled
or raw. They always cut It in small
pieces and ate it raw themselves: blu
the pot still hung over the lamp ant
anything she put into 1t would b
cooked I'm a moment.
When 1 told her that my taste
quite conceded with theirs-as in fac
they did--she was delighted. Peopl
were much alike. then, after all
though they came from a great dis
lance. Sho would, accordingly, trea
me exactly as If / were one OF thei
own people come to visit them from
afar--and. In fact, I was one of thei
own people, for she had heard that tn
wicked Indians to the south spoke
language no man could understand
and I spoke with but a slight flavor o
strangeness.
, sharing the Feast.
The boiled pieces of seal meat ha
been taken out OF the pot and la
steaming on n sideboard. My hostes
picked out for me the lower joint of
seals fore leg, squeezed 1t between he
hands to make sure nothing shout
drip from II, and handed 1t to m'
along with her own copper blade
knife. The next most desirable piec
was similarly squeezed and handed I
: her husband. and others in turn to tn
rest of the family.
When this had been done, one extr
l piece was set aside in case I shoul
want a second helping, and the rel
was divided into four portions. wit
the explanation that four families
8 the village had no fresh seal mea
The little adopted daughter OF ii
1 house, a girl OF or 8, had not begu
l. to eat, for It was her task to take
o small wooden platter with the fol
n pieces OF meat to the four families WI
had none Of their own. I though
Q that the pieces were a good de-
@ smaller than our portions, and tn;
n the recipients would not get quite
r square meal; but I learned later Thu
d every house in which any cooking WI
} done had likewise sent four portion
so that the aggregate must have bee
a good deal more than tho recipien
o could eat at one time.
ri During our meal presents OF fot
d were also brought us from 9th,
IT houses. Each housewife apparent
II knew exactly what the others had p,
s, in their pots, and whoever had an.
d thing a little bit different would ser
J. some OF that. no that every minute
Is two a small girl messenger appear,
e with platter OF something. Some
1t the gifts were especially designated
=, for me-mother had said that hoS
le ever they divided the rest Of what 81
h was sending. the boiled kidney was 4
y me: or mother had sent this sm;
'r piece Of boiled seal clipper to me, wi