TRANSACTIONS OP THE SECTIONS. Bl 



they substitute a furretl dress. They wear also torbases or furred boots having the 

 hair outside. During this severe weather the traveller puts on a large riding-coat, 

 called sana'iak, made with reindeer-skin, having equally the hair outside ; he applies 

 upon his forehead, cheeks, and ears, pieces of fur made on purpose, and surrounds 

 his knees with soutouvi or bands. The furred robe which the women wear in winter, 

 is called parJca. It is made with reindeer-skin, and has the form of a long shirt. 

 The sleeves and the collar are trimmed with furs of the finest quality. The dress 

 of the wealthy Yacoutes is often very expensive. 



The Yacoutes are kind and officious; hospitality towards strangers is one of 

 their virtues. At the same time they are suspicious, mistrustful, and timid. When 

 occasion requires it, they are extremely sober, and a little sora or sour butter 

 suffices for their nourishment ; but as soon as necessity has ceased to compel them, 

 they become such gluttons as to render it difficult to give an idea how far their 

 gluttony goes. A Yacoute is capable of devouring an extraordinary quantity of 

 meat ; but cares Uttle about its quality or its freshness. The entrails of the animals 

 and the ox's hide are aliments which do not cause him any disgust. To eat a fresh 

 ox-hide, they are satisfied with putting it for a little while under hot ashes in order to 

 make the liair fall off. Fat in a liquid state is one of their most exquisite dainties ; 

 they feed upon it without measure. Among them the faculty of being able to eat 

 much is considered as a kind of merit fit to draw upon them respect. It is not 

 uncommon to hear them say, when they praise some one of their people, "outio 

 asatchi khisi 1" namely, that man there eats well. 



The chamans or sorcerers continue to exert a great influence on this credulous 

 people. They feign to entertain relations with the souls of the dead, and by this 

 means often extort from the relatives of the dead, with the pretence of obeying 

 an injunction come from the other world, furs and even cattle. It is well known 

 that these jugglers give themselves up to the practice of gross sorcery. 



The Yacoutes have for the bear a kind of superstitious fear ; they believe that in 

 this animal the spirit survives the body. In spite of this, they do not scruple to 

 shoot a bear and to eat its flesh ; but it is by observing certain forms which they 

 suppose have the power to turn aside the witchcraft. Imagine some Yacoutes 

 travelling, and in crossing a forest that they should meet a bear. All begin by 

 taking off^ their caps, lavishing upon him many salutations, and calling him by 

 the name of (i/ioiie (lord), of worthy old man, of good father, and so on. In the 

 meantime they beseech him, in the most humble terms, to allow them to continue 

 their journey, assuring him, that instead of forming any bad design against his 

 lordship, on the contrary, they entertain the greatest respect for him. But whilst 

 addressing these fine words to the animal, our cunning Yacoutes go forward, choose 

 a tree suitably situated, in order to be safe from behind, and then shoot the animal 

 dead. This first point settled, they make haste to skin it, and having cut it into pieces 

 without breaking the bones, which they put aside (it will soon be seen for what rea- 

 son), they cook the said pieces. During the preparations, a man of tlie same party 

 has taken care to knead witli clay lightly moistened, a little statue representing 

 Boenai, the Great Spirit. The meat being cooked, the caldron is raised in address- 

 ing a prayer to Boenai and to the Spirit of the forest. According to the beHef of 

 the Yacoutes, each forest is placed under the direct influence of a spirit. Then they 

 sit down round the smoking soup, and each of the guests takes care to pour on the 

 fire the first spoonful of gravy. Then the feast begins. Whilst it lasts, the guests 

 often apostrophize the ghost of the bear which they have thus despatched. " No," say 

 they, " don't believe us capable of having perpetrated such a murder. Among us, 

 poor Yacoutes, the art of making guns and deadly balls is unknown. They are 

 either some Russians or Toungouses who have done the evil deed." After the repast, 

 the bones of the animal are carefully put together, wrapped up with the idol in a 

 piece of birch-tree bark, and then hung up to a tree. " You see it well," they go on 

 repeating during the ceremony, " far from being murderers, it is on the contrary we 

 who gather together here the bones of this bear killed by others." 



Marriage is performed without any kind of ceremony. When a Yacoute wishes 

 to obtain the hand of a girl, he must agree with the father respecting the price to be 

 paid for her ; this purchase-money is called the kolim. The wedding and the banquet 

 which accompanies it, take place in the house of the father-in-law of the bridegroom, 

 but at the expense of the latter. The rejoicings are prolonged twice twenty-four 

 1853. 6 



