65 



The shoes (pe'yox) are now of iron, but the Eskimo prefer 

 shoes of whalebone or ivory, which slip over the snow with less 

 resistance. In the old type of sled, small lengths of whalebone, 

 deer antler, or walrus ivory were used (Plate XIV B b). This 

 material came in lengths about 5 inches long. It was fitted to 

 the sled with bone or wooden pegs. Some specimens of this old 

 komatik shoeing were found among old graves and village 

 sites. 



During midwinter, from December to April, when the weather 

 is coldest, the runners receive an extra coating of muck. This is 

 made from reindeer moss mixed in a paste, and plastered over the 

 ordinary runner. It is applied warm to about the thickness of 

 an inch and moulded into a bevel shape like an iron rail. It is then 

 smoothed down, and covered with a thin coat of ice. It slips 

 over the frost-filled snow with little friction. The ice coating 

 has to be renewed daily. 



The bridle (peta'q), by which the dogs are fastened to the 

 sled, is a long heavy trace tied to the bow of the runners, passing 

 through a hole in the front of the runners and over a notch made 

 to receive it. The traces of the dogs are fastened to the bridle 

 by an ivory button. The other end of the trace fastens in the 

 harness (anu'k). 



The bridle is found in two forms in Labrador, i.e., the double 

 bridle and single bridle. The double bridle is used on the east 

 Labrador coast and down the Ungava coast to Fort Chimo; the 

 single bridle is used by the "northerners," the Eskimo of Hopes 

 Advance and other sections north of Fort Chimo. The advantage 

 of the double bridle is that the traces of the dogs may be untangled 

 without the driver stopping his team or getting off his sled. 



The line of the double bridle is looped through the hole 

 under the first crossbar and tied in the middle, exactly equidistant 

 from either side, so as to ensure an even haul (see Figure 13). 

 The two ends, one long and one short, run out from the loop. 

 To the short end is fastened an ivory button ; the long end is run 

 through the loops at the end of the traces and brought back and 

 fastened to the button on the short end. This gives free play 

 to the traces, and allows them to be hauled in and untangled 

 while still fastened to the line with the team travelling. 



