362 THE ESKIMO ABOUT BERING STRAIT [ETH.AN:,. 13 



about their heads fillets made of skin from the throats of reindeer, so 

 arranged that the long hairs stood up, looking like crowns. 



When the guests were close to the house of the feast giver they 

 stopped and two drums were taken out to them by messengers. Then, 

 while the villagers where the feast was given stood in front of their houses 

 looking at the guests, the latter sang and danced on the ice for a few 

 minutes. After they stopped the people of the trader s village danced 

 and sang a welcome. The dancing and singing of the guests was a 

 propitiatory ceremony, such as is customary with strangers on first 

 entering a kashmi, while the dance of the hosts was one of welcome. 

 Then the guests came forward, passing by their hosts without a word, 

 and went into the kashim. As soon as they were seated, the host, or 

 chief naskuk, brought in and gave them the articles requested of the 

 messenger when he went out on the ice to meet them. After this, food 

 was distributed to every one. In the evening the &quot; heads &quot; took into 

 the kashim the skins or other articles they had brought. Each nasltuk 

 must bring at least one of the skins of the kind named by the messengers 

 in. the invitation to the feast or he would be shamed. They usually 

 try, in defense of honor, to bring as many skins as possible of each kind 

 requested. 



While these skins are being brought in the hosts are seated at one 

 side of the room, beating drums and singing. As the naskuk to whom 

 the messenger went first in the village goes in with his furs, the host or 

 chief naskuk of the entertainers meets him as the most important guest 

 and puts upon him a new fur coat as a mark of honor. Then as each 

 headman goes in and throws down his skins he executes a short dance 

 in time with the drums, giving a pantomime representing some exploit 

 of his father or of his own, and singing at the same time in praise of the 

 person represented. After this the young men who came on the gen 

 eral invitation bring in their furs, each having at least one skin of the 

 kind desired, but as it is a distinction to bring more, some of them have 

 quite a number; these are thrown in a heap near the lamp at the head 

 of the room. When all of the guests have brought in their skins they 

 sit about the room for a time and sing. The host then takes out the 

 skins brought by the other headmen. He soon returns, bringing to 

 one of the headmen the articles requested of the messenger, these being 

 a fair equivalent for the furs he had brought to the trader. At the 

 same time the host throws down near the lamp some articles of value 

 and dances for a short time. He then goes out and returns with 

 the articles desired by the second headman, and so on until all have 

 received the things they desired. J&amp;gt;y this time the heap of articles 

 near the lamp has been augmented by the host on each return to the 

 kashim until there is an equiva lo ,nt for the pile of furs brought by the 

 young men, when it is distributed among them. Then the host enter 

 tains the guests by songs and dances and the festival is ended by the 

 distribution of food. 



