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of Agpat late in the year. "No bears have come because there 

 is no ice, and there is no ice because there is too much wind, 

 and there is too much wind because we mortals have offended 

 the powers". When Sorkrark's practical experience fails, he 

 thus concludes with an anthropomorphism, and he imagined 

 further, that by means of his gut-skin drum and a Shamanistic 

 seance, he would be able to find out, why the "powers" felt 

 themselves offended, but owing to weakness he was obliged to 

 give up. 



This example illustrates, if I may say so, the animistic 

 limits of the real comprehension of the Polar Eskimo; they are 

 wider than is the case Avith many other nature-peoples. On 

 the other hand, their horizon is greatly limited in sociological 

 regards, corresponding to the so primitive nature of their so- 

 cial organisation. Thus I may mention how extremely little 

 connected their notions are with regard to the idea of property. 

 What a man has made for himself is his own property, and 

 the idea that this right of possession can be transferred to 

 another has not developed. In their dealings with Europeans 

 they have, it is true, adapted themselves to a practice in this 

 direction; but cases are constantly arising which show their 

 true feelings in the matter. For example, it is impossible for 

 a European to buy an apparatus of a Polar Eskimo and then 

 hand it over to another Eskimo; the first will never be able 

 to get rid of the idea that it is his property, and he will believe 

 himself entitled to take the apparatus back , as soon as he 

 does not wish the other to have the "loan" of it any longer. 



Further, 1 have hitherto mostly laid emphasis on the 

 purely individualistic traits , which one constantly runs up 

 against among the Polar Eskimos, and which are so much the 

 more striking, as one is not accustomed among the more 

 southerly nature-peoples to meet with such a high individual 

 development in conjunction with so slight a social develop- 

 ment. Naturally the life of the Polar Eskimos is not wanting 



