63 



old stone shelter on Ka'givia'k island, Sugla"sirk bay. These 

 ruins look very much like the stone blinds employed by the 

 Eskimo of Bering strait, behind which they crouch with their 

 long-handled bird-nets and sweep in the sea pigeons flying 

 over. The same practice is found among the Polar Eskimo. 



THE SUMMER TENT t 



In summer the Labrador Eskimo leave their snow-houses 

 or huts, according to their location, and go camping to favourite 

 hunting or fishing grounds. 



The ttrpik, or skin tent, is the universal shelter for summer. 

 In early days, when deer were plentiful, the tent cover was made 

 of deerskin. Plate XI B shows an old summer camp with a group 

 of deerskin tents at Cape Chidley. Later, when deer became 

 scarce, sealskins were used, as shown in the much-bepatched 

 tents in Low's photograph of Wakeham bay. 1 



The structure of the old deerskin tent in Labrador was as 

 follows : 



Two poles were erected to support the rear portion of the 

 tent cover, and a single pole fitted into a pocket in the cover at 

 the front. The front pole was brought back tight with a seal- 

 skin cord, which was tied to the rear poles and formed the ridge 

 pole. The front flap was left open in the daytime in fine 

 weather and closed at night. Stones were placed all around the 

 edges of the cover to hold it down and keep out the wind. A 

 more modern way of pitching a tent was with a tripod (qa"nuk) 

 of sticks. Stones were piled around the edges to keep the cover 

 taut. Both types of tents are to be seen in the Cape Chidley 

 illustration. 



Another form of the old deerskin tent, which is still used in 

 Hudson strait and the east coast of Hudson bay, is illustrated in 

 Plate XII. In this case the frame consists of three or four poles 

 at one end and five at the other, upholding a wooden ridgepole. 

 These tents are said to be very stable, and are sometimes even 

 occupied in the winter. 



The modern canvas tent frame is formed of two uprights with 

 a cross bar. Very few of the old skin tents are now to be 

 seen on the Labrador east coast. 



1 A. P. Low, Cruise of the Neptune, p. 158. 



