268 CRUISE OF THE NEPTUNE 
the natives, and any Whales caught during the ship's absence 
are supposed to belong to the ship furnishing the boats. 
The natives and their families and dogs are taken on board 
the schooner and conveyed to the harbour where it is proposed 
to spend the winter. About seventy persons of this tribe were 
at Fullerton during the winter of 1903-04, and twice a day 
received a meal of biscuit and coffee on the ship. These people 
were fed in the cabin after the officers,, and two or three extra 
tables were required to accommodate all, so that the meal con- 
tinued for nearly two hours, and the atmosphere of the cabin 
was anything but sweet. No regular wages are paid to the 
natives either during the winter when hunting, or when in the 
boats in the summer, but they are given such articles as the cap- 
tain thinks they should have or deserve, everything being left 
to his judgment or caprice. On the whole they are fairly well 
treated, and although they only get a very small percentage of 
their catch, still the presence of the Whaler ensures them from 
starvation, and provides them with boats, guns and ammunition, 
all of which would otherwise be difficult or impossible to obtain. 
While with the ship the entire hunt of the natives is supposed 
to belong to the ship, and no definite payment is made for 
whales or fur taken during that period. 
During past years a goodly number of boats have been left to 
the natives by the American Whalers, and at the present time 
the Eskimos scattered from Chesterfield inlet to Repulse bay 
must have upwards of twenty serviceable boats. The Aivilliks 
have for so long become possessed of boats in this manner, that 
they have lost the art of building kyaks, and none of the 
younger men know anything about handling these craft. 
Very little use is made of the ship in the catching of whales, 
and it usually only serves as a convenient base of supply, or as 
a means of transport from one locality to another. 
