178 CEUISE OF THE NEPTUNE 



wear anything but skins throughout the year. For winter cloth- 

 ing deerskin is by far the best, and is always used where it can 

 be obtained. When this material is not available, sealskin, or 

 the skins of foxes, wolves, bears and dogs is used, and some- 

 times the skins of birds. For the summer garments, sealskin 

 is the common material, while waterproof clothing is made from 

 the intestines of the Big seal. 



The clothing of both sexes consists of a coat, breeches, stock- 

 ings and boots. In the winter two suits are worn, the inner 

 with the hair next to the body and the outer one with the hair 

 exposed. The man's coat is usually made to descend a short 

 distance below the hips, and is cut plain on the bottom. There 

 are no openings in the coat, and it is drawn on over the head. 

 It terminates above in a hood, provided with a drawing string, 

 so that in cold weather the opening may be closed tightly about 

 the face. The bottom is often provided with a fringe hanging 

 several inches below the garment, and made by cutting a band 

 of deerskin into narrow thongs. This fringe becomes entangled 

 with the hair of the lower garment, and serves as a wind-break. 

 The coat, or kulitang, varies somewhat in shape in the various 

 tribes, and the style seems at times to be due to the fancy of the 

 individual. On the east side of Hudson bay the coats are of a 

 moderate length ; among the northern Eskimo of Greenland they 

 are quite short and barely reach the tops of the breeches when 

 the man is standing upright, while a wide section of the back is 

 exposed when he bends over. Along the west coast of Hudson 

 bay, among the Aivilliks and Kenipitus, the men's coats are 

 long, and often have a short apron and tail like those of the 

 women. They are also ornamented by the insertion of white 

 patches of deerskin in the backs and on the sleeves. This white 

 skin is only worn by the women of other tribes. The inner suit 

 is made from light summer skins, while the outer ones are heavy 

 and thick, and are from the deer killed late in the autumn. 



The breeches are made loose, and reach from the thigh to a 



