1 6 Olof Krarcr. 



which they do not care about themselves. If a 

 woman is sick she is not taken from her snow-house, 

 but is no better cared for. The only disease is some- 

 thing like consumption in this country. After an 

 Esquimaux dies they drag- him out and bury him in 

 the snow, piling blocks of ice as high as they can 

 above the grave. If he has not specially given his 

 spear and flint and skins to some of his friends be- 

 fore he dies, then everything is buried with him, and 

 the friends go home to think no more about him. 

 If the white bear comes along and digs up the body 

 they do not care. They never speak of a departed 

 friend, because they fancy it would annoy the spirit, 

 which is supposed to be not far off. 



When a man is first taken sick they do one thing 

 for him, if he is not very bad. They gather round 

 him and sing to the Good Spirit, in hopes that He 

 will drive away the bad spirit. If the sick man re- 

 covers they think a great deal of him. 



Sometimes my father would tell us stories about 

 his parents and grand parents, and then he would 

 tell how they said that their parents told how long, 

 long ago the first people had come from Norway. 

 But no one knew what Norway was like. Some said 

 it was a great house somewhere; some said it was the 

 moon, and some said it was where the Good Spirit 

 lived. 



One thing had a great deal of interest for us all. 

 When the sun shone out brightly at the beginning 

 of the daytime it marked the first of the year, just 



