GILBERTSON: ESKIMO CULTURE 5 



it is hoped that the facts recorded may be of value in throwing 

 some light on the deeper and larger problems of the moral life 

 of mankind, I have studiously tried to avoid alike unnecessary 

 theoretical assumptions and conclusions unjustified by our 

 present state of knowledge. &quot;Premature generalizations&quot; 

 Haddon rightly regards as &quot;the chief danger&quot; to which anthro 

 pology is at present liable. It was Tylor who said that 



11 It is of as little use to be a good reasoner when there are no facts 

 to reason upon, as it is to be a good bricklayer when there are no bricks 

 to build with.&quot; (68: 56.) 



It is sometimes painfully evident that those are not wanting who 

 proceed upon the contrary supposition in many an erudite pre 

 tentious discourse on &quot;primitive man&quot; (i.e., what, according to 

 the particular pet scientifico-philosophical scheme, he must 

 logically have been). 



The data used have been gathered largely from the accounts 

 of men who write from personal experience with various branches 

 of the Eskimo stock. Of course, no one man ever has, or likely 

 ever will, come in actual contact with the Eskimo in all parts 

 of their domain. The authorities are chiefly of two classes, 

 Christian missionaries and Arctic explorers, among whom we 

 include trained ethnologists, who went mainly, or exclusively, 

 for purposes of anthropological investigation, as, for example, 

 Boas. The literature on the Eskimo is perhaps, on the whole, 

 more trustworthy than that on most of the other North American 

 aborigines, as the geographical location and climatic conditions 

 of their habitat have prevented the influx of the &quot;summer 

 vacation&quot; type, hence there is not such an abundance of mere 

 &quot;travelers tales.&quot; But even here fact and fancy are undoubt 

 edly mixed in ways which it is often difficult or impossible to 

 determine. The available material is of very uneven value for 

 scientific purposes. I have taken into account factors which 

 might influence the accuracy of the reports given, such as 

 religious or racial prejudices, expert training and critical method, 

 opportunities for observation, etc. 



Another source from which material has been drawn is Eskimo 

 folk-lore. Matthews says that (41: 2) &quot;perhaps the safest way 

 to discover the ethical notions of savages is by the study of their 

 myths and traditions; but,&quot; he adds, &quot;even here we must pro 

 ceed with caution and employ the critical methods of modern 



