Our Little Eskimo Cousin, Page 4

  CHAPTER VII.

  FEAST AND FUN.

  IT did not take long for the hunters to exchange their wet clothing fordry garments. Then with their wives and children they gathered in thehome of their chief.

  "How could the feast be prepared so quickly?" we ask in surprise. If wecould have been there we should not have wondered very long.

  The people squatted on the floor in a circle. Etu and his father stoodin their midst with big knives, ready to cut up the seals lying beforethem. Hungry as they were, they must not eat yet. Something importantmust be done first.

  The Eskimos have many strange beliefs. They think there is a spiritin everything,--the rock, the snow, the wind, the very air has itsspirit. The seal, therefore, has its spirit, too, and must be treatedrespectfully.

  Etu's father solemnly sprinkled water on the body, while every onewatched him in silence. It was an offering to the animal's spirit. Henext carefully cut away the skin and showed the thick layer of blubberbeneath. The eyes of the company sparkled with delight. Many funnyfaces were made as each in turn received a huge chunk of raw blubber.

  Please don't shudder at the thought of eating it. White travellersamong the Eskimos tell us it is really very good, and tastes much likefresh cream. It is only after it has been kept for a long time that itbegins to taste rancid and fishy.

  After the blubber had been divided among the company, the bodies ofthe two seals were opened, and the blood scooped out. It seemedtruly delicious to the hungry visitors. The last course of the feastconsisted of the seal's ribs, which were picked until nothing was leftsave the bones.

  How the people did eat! How they enjoyed the dainties served to them!There were many stories told by those who could stop long enough totalk. Etu was asked, over and over again, to describe how he killed hisfirst seal. And each time the movements of his face, as well as hisarms and hands, seemed to express as much as the words themselves.

  At this strange feast, for which no cooking was needed, the women werenot served first, as in our own land. It was the men who were firstthought of, and who received the choicest pieces. But Etu did notforget his mother, and looked out to see that she was well served.

  When the feast was over at last, all joined in a song. There were onlya few notes, and these were repeated over and over again; but the partymust have enjoyed it, or they would not have sung it so many times.

  At last the moon shone down upon them, and Etu's mother hastened todraw the sealskin curtain. For her people dread the power of the moon,and do not willingly sit in its light. It is a wonderful being, and Etuhas been taught that it brings the cold weather to his people. How isthis possible? Why, as it dwells afar off in the sky, it whittles thetusk of a walrus. In some wonderful way the shavings are changed intothe snow which falls in great sheets over the earth.

  By this time the party began to think of going home. They must preparefor another "sleep," they said, and the people of the house were soonleft to themselves.

  Etu does not count time as we do. He speaks of a "moon" ago, insteadof a month. Yesterday is the period before the last "sleep," and theyears are counted by the winters. A fresh notch is cut in the wall ofhis winter home when the family leave it for their summer's travels.That is the only way his people have to keep account of the passingtime. They do not write or read, except as they are taught by theirwhite visitors, and Etu has never seen a book in his life.

  The boy's father has shown him how to make good maps of the coast. Theyare very neat, and are measured so exactly that every island and pointof land are correctly marked for many miles. They are drawn with theburnt ends of sticks on smooth pieces of driftwood, but if you evervisit Etu, you can trust to them in exploring the country.

  On the day after the feast the other seals were divided evenly amongall the people in the village. The successful hunters did not oncedream of keeping them for their own families. What! have a fine dinneryourself, while others around you go hungry! It was not to be thoughtof. All must share alike.

  CHAPTER VIII.

  HARD TIMES.

  TIME passed by. The weather was terribly cold, even for these people.The hunters went out on the ocean whenever it was safe to venture, butthe seals and walruses were very scarce. They had probably gone insearch of warmer waters.

  At this very time their winter stores were all stolen. Whenever thereis an extra supply on hand, it is hidden in a deep hole underground,so that neither wild animals nor dogs can reach it. Such a place forstores is called a _cache_ by our western hunters and trappers.

  One night Etu was wakened by a great noise outside. In a moment thewhole household was aroused. They heard the dogs howling and rushingaround. There was certainly a fight of some kind. Etu and his fatherwere dressed in a moment, as well as two other men who shared the home.

  "Wolves! It is a pack of wolves," cried the women. "Don't go out andleave us; it is not safe."

  But the men only seized their spears and moved as quickly as possibledown the passageway. They must go to the aid of the dogs, who hadbeen left outdoors for the night. They also thought of their preciousstores. The wolves had probably scented the place and were thenattacked by the dogs.

  In a short time the men returned to the frightened household. They wereall safe. The wolves had fled, but the harm had already been done. Nota scrap of the precious stores remained. The dogs had finished what thewolves left behind them. It was the quarreling of the dogs themselvesover the food that had wakened the people. It was plain, however, thatthe wolves had been there, because the dead body of one of them layclose by the storehouse. The dogs had been more than a match for them.

  There was nothing for Etu and his people to eat that day. There wasscarcely any oil in the lamps. The women and children tried to keepwarm beneath the piles of furs; the men went out to search along theshore for seal holes.

  Our brave little Etu looked upon himself as a man now. So, leading hisbrightest dog by a cord, he started out in search of prey. The dog hada wonderfully keen scent. He would help in finding the hiding-place ofa seal, if there were one to be found.

  You may not know what a queer home the mother seal makes for her baby.She chooses a place on the solid ice that is covered with a deep layerof snow. She scrapes away the snow and carries it down through a holein the ice into the water below. When her work is done, she has adome-shaped house. The floor is the icy shelf, from which there is apassageway to the water beneath. There is a tiny breathing-place in thesnowy roof to which she turns when needing air.

  The baby seal is born in this strange home. He lies here and sleepsmost of the time till he is old enough to take care of himself. Hismother often visits him. She hopes his enemies will not find him. Butthe bear, the fox, and the Eskimo dog, are watching for signs of justsuch hiding-places as these. Their scent is keen and they discover thetiny breathing-holes when men and boys would pass them by. This is whyEtu took his dog along with him.

  Perhaps you wonder why Etu did not let Vanya run free. He only wishedhim to find a seal hole; the boy would do the hunting himself. Thedog, if left alone, might succeed in scaring away the old seal; and Etuwished to get both the baby and its mother.

  The boy tramped for many hours. Remember, he had no breakfast thismorning, yet he went with a bright face and a stout heart. When nightcame, Etu was still brave and cheerful, although he had met with nosuccess. He went home and found the men just returning. They also hadfailed.

  They could expect no supper, nor fire to warm them, after the longday's tramp in the bitter cold, but they must not show sadness; theymust keep up stout hearts for the sake of the women and children.

  After all, there was a surprise waiting for Etu. His mother had usedthe last bit of oil in thawing a little snow to give the household somewater to drink. And, besides this, there was a scrap of seal hide foreach one to chew. Tough as it was, it was received as though it werethe greatest dainty in the world.

  After this meal, if it could be called one, Etu crept into bed, andwas soon sound asle
ep. Morning came, and our little cousin started outonce more in search of food. But he had no better success than the daybefore. When he got home at night there was good news awaiting him,although it did not bring any supper.

  His father had found a seal-hole, and had said to the other men, "Iwill not leave my place till I can bring food for my hungry people."They left him, and went back to the village to tell his waitinghousehold. His good wife at once got a heavy fur robe, and sent it backto her patient husband. He could wrap it about his feet, as he satwatching in the cold.

  Perhaps it would be only a short time before he would hear the motherseal blowing at the hole below. But, again, hours might pass beforeshe would come back to nurse her baby. Yet the man must watch andbe ready to pierce the breathing-hole with his long spear at anymoment,--it was his only chance of killing the mother.

  The long hours of the night passed; the morning, too, was gone, when,suddenly, the quick ears of the hunter heard the welcome sound. Andnow, a second blow! the seal's head must be close to the hole. Like aflash, down went the waiting spear, and fastened itself through thenose of the seal. If it had turned a half-inch in its course, it wouldhave failed in its work.

  There was a violent pull at the spear, as the seal darted down throughthe passage from her icy home to the water below. But the hunter had along rope fastened to the spear, and he let it run out quickly. Then,brushing away the snowy roof, he jumped down on the floor of the"igloo." With two or three strong pulls he brought up the strugglingseal, and quickly ended her life. It was an easy matter to dispose ofthe frightened baby.

  What a prize he had gained! He did not think of his frost-bitten nose,nor of his empty stomach. He only pictured the joy of the waitingpeople when he should reach home.

  When the hard-earned supper was set before them, you cannot guess whatwas the greatest dainty of all. It was the milk inside the baby seal'sstomach! It was sweet and delicate in its taste, and was much like themilk from a green cocoanut.

  There were many other hard times before that winter was over, but Etudid his part bravely, and no one died of want.

  One day the boy hunted a seal bear-fashion, and was successful, too. Hehad learned many lessons from this wise creature, and he did not forgetthem. The polar bear, so strong and fierce, is also very cunning.If he discovers a dark spot far away on the ice, he seems to say tohimself, "Ah! there is a seal asleep. I will deceive him, and catchhim for my dinner." So he creeps, or, rather, hitches along, with hisfore feet curled beneath him. Nearer and nearer he draws to his prey.And now the sleeping seal awakes. Is there danger? But the bear at oncestops moving, and makes a low, strange sound. It is different from hisusual voice. The seal listens, and is charmed. He turns his head fromside to side, and then is quite still once more. The bear creeps nearernow; once more the seal starts, but is again charmed by the strangesound. Suddenly he is caught in those powerful claws, and the long,sharp teeth fasten themselves in his body. In a moment it is all overwith the poor seal.

  "ETU STOPPED MOVING AND LAY QUITE STILL"]

  This is one of the lessons Etu learned from Ninoo, the bear. Hefollowed his teacher well when one day he, too, saw a dark spot onthe shore, quite a distance away. Holding his spear beneath him, hecrouched down on the snow, and jerked himself along. For some time theseal was not aroused. Then, opening his eyes, he must have thought:"Is that a brother seal over there? His coat is like mine." Still hewatched, for a seal is easily frightened. Etu stopped moving and layquite still.

  "No, there is no danger," thought the seal; and he closed his eyesagain.

  Once more Etu began to move, and drew quite near before the sealstirred again. But now the creature seemed to question himself oncemore.

  "Is it a friend, or is it one of my terrible enemies?"

  He was about to dart away when Etu began to make a low, strange sound.You would have thought it was the bear himself, he was imitated sowell. The seal seemed pleased, and did not stir again.

  Before another five minutes the young hunter had killed his victim. Hehurried homeward with the heavy burden flung over his broad shoulders.You can imagine how proud his mother felt when he appeared in thedoorway of the house and showed his prize of the morning.

  CHAPTER IX.

  AN ESKIMO CHRISTMAS.

  NOT long after this Etu's people celebrated a festival. It was aboutChristmas time, but the boy had never heard of our own great holiday.Yet his own Christmas always means very much to him.

  All the people of the village met together on a certain evening inEtu's home. The medicine-man was there, and made a sort of prayer.He prayed that all might go well with the people during the comingyear. This medicine-man is the priest as well as the doctor among theEskimos. After the prayer there was a feast. The hunters had done theirbest, and had managed to get a good supply of seal meat on hand.

  The next day after the feast, men, women, and children gatheredtogether in a circle in the open air. A vessel of water had been placedin their midst. Each one brought a piece of meat with him. No one spokewhile it was being eaten, but each thought of his good spirit, andwished for good things. Then each in turn took a drink of water fromthe vessel. As he did so he spoke, telling when and where he was born.

  When this ceremony was over, all threw presents to each other. Theybelieved they would receive good things from the good spirits if theywere generous at this time.

  Soon after this festival came New Year's. This, too, was a strangecelebration.

  Two men, one of them dressed as a woman, went from hut to hut blowingout the flame in each lamp. It must be lighted from a fresh fire.

  The people believe there is a new sun in the heavens at the beginningof each new year. They think they ought to picture this great change intheir own homes.

  The year was a moon old, as Etu would say, when one day he was outhunting for seal-holes with his father. They brought a pack of dogsalong with them. These had just been loosened for a run when theydarted off as though they had found a fresh scent. They rushed toward agreat bank of snow on the side of a high rock.

  Surely it was no seal-hole they had discovered. The small opening onthe surface of the snow showed that it was the breathing-place ofa polar bear. The mother bear eats vast quantities of food at thebeginning of winter; then she seeks a sheltered spot at the foot ofsome rock, and begins her long rest. The snow falls in great driftsover her. This makes a warm, close house. Does it seem as though shemust die for want of air? There is no danger of this, for the breathfrom her great body thaws enough snow around her to form a small room.It also makes a sort of chimney through the snow, to the air above.

  The baby bear is born in this house of snow, and there he stays withhis mother till old enough to hunt for himself.

  It was the home of a mother bear, then, that the dogs had discovered.They were wildly excited, for Eskimo dogs are no cowards. They love abear hunt hugely. They rushed upon the opening and quickly pushed awaythe snow. Etu and his father stood on the watch for the mother bear andher cub to appear. They were as much excited as the dogs, but stoodwith spears in hand, perfectly still.

  Look out now! for here they come. What a tiny little thing the babybear is! It is like a little puppy. It would be easy to end its life,but Etu knows that would not be safe. It would make the mother ahundred times more dangerous.

  The great creature looks now in one direction, now in another. It wouldnot be hard for her to escape; but she will not leave her cub. So sherushes madly toward Etu's father. The dogs jump around her, biting ather heels. She does not seem even to notice them. Look at the longsharp teeth as she opens her mouth for a spring upon the man. One blowof her paws would knock him senseless. But he does not fear. He jumpsto one side and dodges the blow. At the same time, he strikes at herthroat with his long spear.

  The blood gushes forth and she staggers. However, she shakes herselftogether with a great effort and rises on her hind legs to strikeagain. The pack of dogs surround her and keep biting at her legs, butthe man would not be able
to escape if Etu did not suddenly come upbehind. He plunges his own spear far into her side. She gives onefearful groan and falls to the ground. No hunter will ever be troubledby her again.

  The poor little cub runs to its mother's side, giving piteous cries.But no one is left now to pity and love it, so its life is mercifullyand quickly ended. The men and dogs are soon on their homeward way.They must get sledges and go back quickly for the bodies of the twobears. Suppose that while they were gone another party of Eskimosshould come along, need they fear their prey would be stolen? Thethought does not enter their heads, for such a thing has never beenknown to happen among their people. They are honest in all ways, andwould not touch that which they believe to be another's.

  CHAPTER X.

  SUMMER TRAVELS.

  THE long winter was over at last, and Etu's people got ready to leavetheir underground homes. They would spend the first spring days fartherup the coast, and closer still to the water's side; for there theycould watch the seal-holes more easily.

  The household goods were packed on the sledges, and Etu said good-byeto his winter home for four months. The men walked along, guiding thedogs, while the women and children rode in the sledges. They travellednearly all day before they came to a place where they wished to settle.But the weather was even now bitterly cold. The snow still covered theearth, and the water along the shore was a mass of broken ice.

  "THE BLOCKS OF SNOW WERE HANDED TO THEM"]

  Where were these people to be sheltered when night came on? Thequestion could be easily answered. They would build homes forthemselves in an hour or two. The sheets of snow around them were quitesolid, and the boys and men began to saw the snow into thick blocks.The walls and roofs of the houses should be built of these.