408 VOYAGE TO THE 



CHAP - ter's picture, and so impatient to see it finished, that 

 *— - yw she snatched away the paper several times to observe 

 fsfe the progress I was making. The father entered the 

 tent while this was going forward, and observing 

 what I was about, called to his son to bring him a 

 piece of board that was lying outside the tent, and 

 to scrape it clean, which indeed was very necessary. 

 Having procured a piece of plumbago from his 

 wife, he seated himself upon a heap of skins, threw 

 his legs across, and very good-humouredly com- 

 menced a portrait of me, aping my manner and 

 tracing every feature with the most affected care, 

 whimsically applying his finger to the point of his 

 pencil instead of a penknife, to the great diversion 

 of his wife and daughters. By the time I had finish- 

 ed my sketch, he had executed his, but with the 

 omission of the hat, which, as he never wore one 

 himself, he had entirely forgotten ; and he was ex- 

 tremely puzzled to know how to place it upon the 

 head he had drawn. 



On meeting with the Esquimaux, after the first 

 salutation is over an exchange of goods invariably 

 ensues, if the party have any thing to sell, which is 

 almost always the case ; and we were no sooner 

 seated in the tent than the old lady produced several 

 bags, from which she drew forth various skins, or- 

 namental parts of the dress of her tribe, and small 

 ivory dolls, allowing us to purchase whatever we 

 liked. Our articles of barter were necklaces of blue 

 beads, brooches, and cutlery, which no sooner came 

 into the possession of our hostess than they were 

 transferred to a stone vessel half filled with train-oil, 

 where they underwent an Esquimaux purification. 

 We found amongst this party a small llussian 



