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CUSTOMS OF THE ESKIMOS. 149 



is marked, so that during the next winter and spring, if 

 food becomes scarce, these meat stores may be resorted 

 to. When required, the meat thus stored is often quite 

 blue or decomposed, but it has to be pretty bad when a 

 hungry Eskimo will not eat it. 



Seal hunting is a most curious and interesting form of 

 sport. The seals are hunted in entirely different ways 

 at different times of the year. 



During the entire winter season they keep holes open 

 through the shore ice, but because of the depth of snow 

 are not seen until the warm spring sun exposes their 

 hiding places. The Eskimo hunter has, however, a way 

 of finding them out before this. He harnesses a dog 

 that has been trained for the work, and, armed with 

 his seal harpoon, leads him out to the snow-covered field, 



here the two walk in a zig-zag course, until the saga- 

 cious animal catches the scent of the seal and takes his 

 master straight to its secret abode. 



Here, under the hard crusted snow, it has formed for 

 itself quite a commodious dwelling, but, unlike the 

 Eskimo snow-house, its doorway opens into the water 



tead of into the air. This doorway, which is in the 

 form of a round hole, just large enough to admit the 

 seal, is kept from freezing up by the wary animal, 

 which ever keeps itself in readiness, upon the slightest 

 suspicion of danger, to plunge into it. 



Usually upon the arrival of the hunter, the seal, if at 

 home, hearing the footsteps above, quickly vacates the 

 premises. The Eskimo then, taking advantage of its 

 absence, ascertains the exact locality of the hole in the 

 ice, by thrusting his long slender spear down through 

 the snow. When the exact position of the hole is found, 



