56 NATURAL HISTORY OF ARCTIC AMERICA. 



clotlnug of tlie Cumberland Eskimo made from the skins of the young 

 seal ; tb ey at first mistook it for bear. I was informed that, in the vicinity 

 of Disko at k^ast, they never i)rocure enough of the skins of the young 

 in the white coat to use them for clothing to any extent. 



lu the Cumberland waters they are resident, and do not migrate at all 

 unless much disturbed, and then they merely seek a more secluded 

 locality. On the Greenland coast they api^ear to migrate up the ice 

 fjords in summer, but to be more generally distributed at other seasons. 



The netsick shows a decided predilection for the quiet still bays and 

 fjords, seldom ^'enturing far from land. Tliey are the only seal caught 

 through the ice in winter, and are consequently the chief and almost 

 sole dependence of the Eskimo for food, fuel, light, and clothing. 



The skins of the adults are made into summer clothing, while the 

 young are in great demand for under- garments and for trousers. 

 Children often have entire suits of the young in the white coats; such 

 clothing looks very beautiful when new, but it is new but a few 

 days, and after this it is repulsive enough. The females were found 

 enceinte in the latter iiart of October, and a foetus nearly ready for birth 

 was taken from the uterus January IG. It was two feet from the end of 

 nose to the end of hind tlippers. It was so doubled in the uterus, how- 

 ever, as to occupy a space hardly a foot in length; the hind flippers 

 were turned forward on the tibise, the fore fliiijiers hugged the sides, and 

 the head bent over on the neck and inclined to one side. 



In a large tjord known as the Greater Kingwah the tide runs so swiftly 

 at one locality that it never freezes for a space varying from ten to one 

 hundred acres. Here the netsick gather in considerable numbers all 

 winter, and it is a favorite resort for such Eskimo as are fortunate 

 enough to possess a gun. Being but a few miles from our winter harbor, 

 there were almost daily excursions to these tide rifts by our Eskimo 

 hunters. After the 1st of March very few i^regnant females were killed 

 at this place, they having by this time chosen the localities for having 

 their young. Those killed after this date were all adult " tigak," or old 

 stinking males. 



It was interesting that the young — yearlings and some two-year olds, 

 such as had not yet arrived at maturity — were seldom, if ever, killed in 

 this open water, but lived in colonies by themselves. When an Eskimo 

 finds a number of atluJcs (breathing-holes) near together, he always marks 

 the place by raising little mounds of snow near the holes, for he knows 

 that here is a colony of young animals, which have better skins and 



