310 



THE ESKIMO ABOUT BERING STRAIT 



[ETH. ANN. 18 



Fir;. 97 Lancet pointed with nephrite ($). 



One of these lancets (figure 07) was obtained on the northern shore 

 of Norton sound. It is a small, thin, double edge blade, of hard, pale- 

 greenish stone, 

 an inch and an 

 eighth in length, 

 broad 

 ened at 

 the butt, 



which is inserted in the split end of a short wooden handle 

 and wrapped tightly with a strong sinew cord. I saw other 

 old instruments of this kind made of slate, but at present 

 most of the lancets are similar in shape but are made of iron. 

 An aching tooth is extracted by placing the square point 

 of a piece of deerhorn against it and striking the other end 

 a sharp blow with an object used as a mallet. 



On the islands in Bering strait I saw men using long- 

 handle scratchers to relieve irritation caused by eruptions 

 on the skin or by parasites. Figure 98 illustrates one of 

 these implements which was obtained on Sledge island. It 

 consists of a wooden rod about 17 inches in length, having a 

 thin-edge ivory disk an inch in diameter fitted on one end. 

 In the collection obtained in Labrador by Mr L. M. Turner, 

 there is a specimen of a similar instrument. 



MORTUARY CUSTOMS 



The burial customs of the Eskimo with whom I came in con 

 tact vary so greatly that I have given in detail an account 

 of the observances noted in different localities, beginning with 

 the Uualit at St Michael. 



The following are Unalit terms used by the St Michael 

 people : 



Corpse tu -kd-mtil -ii-g i-a (dead one). 



Spirit or shade tti-y un -it-ghdk. 



Ghost, or visible shade a-Vii-ukh -lok. 



Grave kuTt-u 1 . 



When a person dies during the day his relatives, amid loud 

 wailing, proceed at once to dress him in the best clothing 

 they possess, using, if possible, garments that have never 

 been worn. Should the death take place at night, the body 

 is not dressed until just at sunrise the following morning. 

 Some of the male relatives or friends go out and make a 

 rude box of drift logs in the usual burial place, which is a 

 short distance back of the village. During this time the Fiw - 9 s- I5ack 



scratchcr (4), 



body lies in its place on the sleeping platform, with the oil 

 lamp burning day and night close by, until the burial, while the rel 

 atives and friends sit about on other sleeping benches. When the box 



