126 H. P. STEENSBY. 
Alaska and Yukon, that it preferably resorts in schools during the summer to 
the shallow water at the mouths of the rivers, where it is hunted by a series 
of kayakers, who try to imprison the school. Towards the east the whales do 
not go much beyond the Mackenzie territory. According to RICHARDSON's and 
STEFANSSON’s observations they diminish east of Cape Parry, and in great num- 
bers hardly go east of Crocker River. The whale hunting which is carried on 
during some weeks about the month af August is different from the hunting 
of most of the hitherto mentioned Eskimo groups, inasmuch as these essentially 
have procured blubber by seal hunting on the ice during winter and summer. 
The period partly coincides with the period of reindeer hunting in the interior. 
Seal hunting is, however, by no means neglected in the Mackenzie terri- 
tory, and is here, as in other Arctic districts hunting on the ice. Likewise here 
it is the Ringed Seal, of which STEFANSSoN! reports that nowhere else did he 
see them as numerous as in Darnley Bay. In the winter the Maupok method 
is used, and in spring are hunted the seals which have crept up on the ice (Utok). 
The last mentioned modes of hunting are, however, hampered by the peculiar 
geographical conditions of the stretch of coast, in that the shallow water at the 
coast necessitates the seals resorting rather far out to sea, and out there the 
pack-ice lies, and proves a hindrance, so it is only on the smooth ice between 
the stranded icebergs and ice blocks that hunting can be carried on. According 
to RicHarpson the Mackenzie Eskimo in the spring disperse over the ice to 
carry on seal hunting, and during this time they live in snow houses. 
The summer is not solely devoted to whale hunting. It is also at this season 
that the Eskimo have to fish for salmon in the rivers, and in the autumn they 
must hunt the large herds of reindeer which visit the coasts and the few near 
lying islands such as Herschel Island, which especially seems to be a favourite 
summer and autumn place of residence for the Western Mackenzie Eskimo. 
Of hunting ınethods a few were observed. FRANKLIN on August 4, 1826, some 
kilometres to the west of Point Manning, was present at a battue where the 
Eskimo tried to surround a herd of reindeer in order to drive them out into a 
lake, where the animals were killed with spears from kayaks. Finally, along 
the coast, numerous hunting fences were found which generally were made of 
piled-up turf. Simpson and FRANKLIN mention several which generally led out 
into a lake, so also in this case the usual thing seems to be the killing of the ani- 
mals from the kayak. Fishing plays an important röle, which is evident from 
the supplies of salmon which Sımrsox and PETITöT mention, as also from the 
fact that here are used fishing nets of bast, sinews or whalebone. The East Eskimo 
only fish with the salmon spear and the little hand net. This employment of 
nets for which even bast is used as a material probably points in the direction of 
the wood and lake districts of the interior of America. STEFANSSON asserts that 
the net was imported about 125 years ago. 
The sledge is the usual Eskimo form of ice-sledge, with narrow runners, 
which is extensively used on the smooth ice, which, during a great part of the 
1 I, р. 321. — II, р. 451. 
