THE LONG NIGHT 167 



or a fear of the future. The manifestations of this dis- 

 order are somewhat startling. 



The patient, usually a woman, begins to scream and 

 tear off and destroy her clothing. If on the ship, she 

 will walk up and down the deck, screaming and gesticu- 

 lating, and generally in a state of nudity, though the 

 thermometer may be in the minus forties. As the 

 intensity of the attack increases, she will sometimes 

 leap over the rail upon the ice, running perhaps half a 

 mile. The attack may last a few minutes, an hour, or 

 even more, and some sufferers become so wild that they 

 would continue running about on the ice perfectly 

 naked until they froze to death, if they were not 

 forcibly brought back. 



When an Eskimo is attacked with piblokto indoors, 

 nobody pays much attention, unless the sufferer should 

 reach for a knife or attempt to injure some one. The 

 attack usually ends in a fit of weeping, and when 

 the patient quiets down, the eyes are bloodshot, the 

 pulse high, and the whole body trembles for an hour 

 or so afterward. 



The well-known madness among the Eskimo dogs 

 is also called piblokto. Though it does not seem to be 

 infectious, its manifestations are similar to those of 

 hydrophobia. Dogs suffering from piblokto are usually 

 shot, but they are often eaten by the Eskimos. 



The first winter moon came early in November, 

 and on the 7th MacMillan started for Cape Columbia 

 for a month of tidal observations, taking with him Jack 

 Barnes, a sailor, Egingwah, and Inighito and their 

 wives. Poodloonah, Ooblooah and Seegloo went as 

 MacMillan's supporting party, to carry supplies, and 



