56 THE LIFE OF E. J. PECK 



Orphans are often adopted by the relatives of the 

 deceased. It is also by no means uncommon to 

 find orphan boys adopted by those who have no 

 male children of their own. The prospect of the 

 boys being able to keep them in their old age is an 

 incentive to this action. The treatment of children 

 is generally very mild. They are not scolded, 

 whipped, or subjected to any corporal punishment. 

 Infanticide has been practised, but probably only 

 female children or children of widows and widowers 

 have been murdered in this way. The reason for 

 it is the difficulty of provision only. 



We next turn to the outdoor life of the Eskimo, 

 and examine it in some of its details. Let us look 

 first at his means of locomotion. 



The sledge is his carriage ; dogs are his motor 

 power. 



Speaking of the West Coast of Hudson's Bay, Dr. 

 Boas says that in old time, when wood was scarce, 

 sledges were sometimes made of walrus hide, cut 

 lengthwise, rolled up tightly and then frozen. Now 

 they are frequently made of wood where it can be 

 obtained. They vary in size according to the 

 material available. The authority just quoted tells 

 us that they are about 16 feet long, and the runners 

 are placed from 18 to 22 inches apart. These are 

 sometimes made of steel, which is obtained from 

 traders ; sometimes they are of bone. 



In extremely cold weather these runners are often 



