108 CRUISE OF STEAMEE COR WIN IN THE ARCTIC OCEAN. 



fine hammer, made of quartz crystal, was brought for sale, but unfortuuately several of our party 

 wanted it, and started an opposition trade. The native seeing our anxiety to possess it must 

 have suspected that quartz crystal hammers were valuable and raised the price accordingly, until 

 finally the amount demanded exceeded the entire supply of trade goods taken on shore; in conse- 

 quence the coveted article remained in the possession of the original owner, who will no doubt 

 wonder, when too late, why he did not sell when he had an opportunity of getting such things as 

 he was in need of, and make another hammer for himself. On the return of our party we were 

 followed by the entire population of the settlement, each with some useless article which he 

 endeavored to dispose of. One old fellow loudly demanded more tobacco for some article which he 

 had sold. Mr. Nelson stopped to ascertain the facts and, if possible, satisfy the old man, who was 

 apparently very earnest in his pleadings. Noticing something in his hand, which he was trying 

 to conceal, one of the party caught hold of and opened it, and found therein a comb, which he had 

 stolen from Nelson ; a discovery which raised a general shout, and caused the old man to slink 

 quietly away. The others seemed to regard the affair as au excellent joke, and I think the sudden 

 departure of the thief was more through fear of punishment than shame at having been detected 

 at stealing. Another native brought the skin of an Arctic hare with the tail of a red fox sewed 

 onto it, and assured us in the most solemn manner that it grew that way. It was bought, not 

 as a natural curiosity, but as au evidence of the advancement of the Innuit in the ' ways that are 

 dark.' The reputation of the Point Hope natives is not good, but with, all their kuavishness they 

 do not appear cruel or vindictive, and ordinarily a party of white men thrown amoug them would 

 be well treated. They would never be quite sure of a continuance of friendship, however. Any 

 ill luck, loss of property, or sickness might at any time be attributed by the shaman to the pres- 

 ence of the ' Nileaugameuts 1 (strangers), when they would not hesitate to kill them." 



They are said to have a few long-established rules which are general throughout the north. 

 For instance, every seal caught at a wintering place shall be equally divided. Any one picking up 

 drift-wood has only to put a few stones on it, as it lies upon the shore, to establish his ownership. 



All game which is large or rare is common property. On the Alaska coast the flesh of the 

 whale is common property, but the bone belongs to the parties engaged in taking the whale. In 

 Greenland whoever is the first to see a bear has ownership in it, no matter who kills it. 



They have many superstitions. In fact, although they appear rollicking and thoughtless, 

 nearly every action of their lives is attended by some serious observance which is followed as 

 closely as if absolutely necessary to their existence. They are, as a rule, honorable in their deal- 

 ings with each other, but the temptation to steal from white men often proves too much for their 

 not very firmly fixed principles of honesty. 



Parry, speaking of the want of gratitude shown by the Innuits in their transactions with him, 

 says: "In general, however considerable the benefit conferred, it was forgotten in a day." The 

 indifference and lack of gratitude of which Parry complains is probably due to nothing more than 

 their careless, thoughtless nature. They appear to be hospitable and readily divide their food and 

 lodging, or do anything necessary for the comfort of a guest, whether native or stranger. 



Like all aborigines the men are lazy and require the women to perform most of the manual 

 labor. I have many times observed the women engaged at tasks much too hard for them, while 

 the men sat carelessly by, smoking their pipes, without offering the slightest assistance. When 

 spoken to about it, they seemed perfectly willing to help and acted as if the idea of showing any 

 consideration to the women was a new one, and rather amusing. A party, consisting of the 

 parents, two sons, and a daughter, being detained on board the Corwin during a cold storm, were 

 given a pot of hot tea and some hard bread, and permitted to go into the pilot-house for shelter. 

 The men went inside with the food, leaving the women outside without giving them a look or 

 apparently a thought. When told that they must divide the hot tea with the women and give them 

 a chance to share the shelter, both men and women looked puzzled and amused. The men readily 

 did as told, and the women seemed pleased but embarrassed, and acted as if they felt that they 

 were being crowded with honors which did not belong to them. Of course, being entirely untaught, 

 the morals of the women are low, and virtue is a thing of which they have no conception. The 

 men object to this lack of virtue in their wives, not upon any moral grounds, but because of their 

 belief that it brings them bad luck in their hunting and fishing. An unsuccessful beluga hunt is 



