DAYBREAK IN CUMBERLAND SOUND 221 



Soon the dogs and people were feasting away to 

 their heart's content, and the latter were quite 

 elated at the prospect of having many a good meal. 



Whale-skin, which is called muktak, is considered 

 to be a dainty dish, and when the whale was caught 

 the missionaries looked forward with pleasure to 

 their first meal of this delicacy as likely to give them 

 an agreeable change of diet. But the result was 

 not apparently so pleasurable as had been antici- 

 pated. The only remark Mr. Peck makes about it 

 is : " Mr. Parker and I had our first meal of muktak. 

 It is about an inch thick and of a dark colour. When 

 boiled, it is fairly palatable." 



A little later, in the middle of November, several 

 seals were caught. The Eskimos seemed to be 

 always ready to share their good things with their 

 European friends. On November 16 the diary says : 

 " They very kindly brought us several pieces of 

 seal's meat. We cut this up in steaks and then fry 

 it. As it is considered a capital preventive of scurvy 

 we think it wise to use it freely, and when well cooked 

 it is certainly more digestible than canned meats." 

 But though the wants of the Eskimos were thus pro- 

 vided for a time, the food supply seemed to be pre- 

 carious. Bad weather did its work continually in 

 bringing the people to the verge of starvation. 



It has been mentioned that early in the year 1895 

 the sun failed them altogether. The date of that 

 entry in the diary is January 8. Well, for days and 



