NELSON] 



GAMES AND TOYS 



331 



fond of them; as with the southern aborigines, the Eskimo will gamble 

 away everything they possess. In the descriptions of the various 

 games the locality where each was observed is given, but it should be 

 noted that they are not ordinarily limited to any one tribe or district, 

 but, so far as could be learned, seemed to be generally distributed, 

 with slight local modifications. Implements used in some of the games 

 were obtained from widely separated places. 



Friendly contests in trials of strength, wrestling, etc, were much 

 more common before than they have been since the arrival of white 

 men, their coming having put a stop to the predatory raids of one vil 

 lage upon another and caused a diminution in the rivalry among the 



FIG. 120 Boy with toy sled, St Lawrence island. 



young men to excel in strength and agility which accompanied the 

 more warlike spirit of other days. 



In addition to the games of the men, others are played by the women 

 and children. Boys have toy hunting outfits, with models of sleds, 

 kaiaks, and umiaks, and small bows and arrows for hunting birds; they 

 also snare birds and set traps for mice and other small game. The girls 

 play with dolls made of ivory or other material, and also have small 

 models of dishes and other women s household utensils, with which 

 they amuse themselves in the house very much after the manner of 

 children in civilized countries, playing at housekeeping and women s 

 work of various kinds. Figure 120, from a sketch made by Mr H. W. 

 Elliott on St Lawrence island, represents the boy Poonook, with, his 



