422 THE POINT BARROW ESKIMO. 



Salutation. We had no opportunity of witnessing any mooting be 

 tween these people and strange Eskimo, so that it is impossible to tell 

 whether they practice any particular form of salutation on such occa 

 sions. We saw nothing of the kind among themselves. White men. 

 are saluted with shouts of &quot;Xakuruk!&quot; (good), and some Eskimo 

 have learned to shake hands. They no longer practice the common 

 Eskimo salutation of rubbing noses, but say that they once did. Sergt. 

 Middleton Smith, of our party, informs me that he once saw a couple 

 of natives in Capt. Herendeen s trading store give an exhibition of the 

 way this salutation was formerly practiced. 



This custom was perhaps falling into disuse as early as 1837, since 

 Thomas Simpson. 1 in describing his reception at Point Barrow, says: 

 We were not, however, either upon this or any other occasion, favored 

 with the kooniks or nose-rubbing salutations that have so annoyed 

 other tra.ve.lers. Mr. Elson. however, expressly states that the people, 

 probably Utkiavwinmiun, whom he met at Refuge Inlet eleven years 

 before, rubbed noses and cheeks with him 2 and Maguire :l narrates how 

 the head of the party of visitors from Point Hope saluted him. Tie says: 

 &quot;He fixed his forehead against mine and used it as a fulcrum to rub 

 noses several times.&quot; 



Healiny. As is the case with Eskimo generally, these people rely 

 for curing disease chiefly upon the efforts of certain persons who have 

 the power of exorcising the supernatural beings by whom the disea.se 

 is caused. A large number of men and, 1 believe, some women were 

 supposed to have this power and exercise it in cases of sickness, in 

 some instances, at least, upon the payment of a fee. These people 

 correspond closely to the angekut of the Greenlanders and Eastern Es 

 kimo, and the so-called &quot;shamans&quot; of southern Alaska, but, as far as 

 we could see, do not possess the power and influence usually else 

 where ascribed to this class. 



It was exceedingly difficult to obtain any definite information con 

 cerning these people, and we only discovered casually thai such and 

 such a person was a &quot;doctor&quot; by hearing that he had heen employed 

 in a certain case of sickness, or to perform some ceremony of incanta 

 tion. We did not even succeed in learning the name of this class of 

 people, who, in talking with us, would call themselves &quot;tukte, : as they 

 did our surgeon. On one occasion some of the party happened to visit 

 the house of a sick man where one of these &quot;doctors&quot; was at work. He 

 sat facing the entrance of the house, beating his drum at intervals, and 

 making a babbling noise with his lips, followed by long speeches ad 

 dressed to something down the trapdoor, bidding it &quot;go !&quot; We were 

 given to understand that these speeches were addressed to a tuiiiia or 

 supernatural being. 4 Their only idea of direct treatment of disease is 



1 Narrative, p. 15&quot;). 



2 Heeehy s Voyage p. :tlli. 

 .V. W. Passage,, p. 385. 



4 Dr. Simpson says (op. &amp;lt;:it., p. 275) : &quot; Diseases are also eonsiclereil to lie turn ^uks. 



