Should any disaster happen or any epidemic oc- 

 cur, these scowling old rascals would be sure to 

 pretend that it was due to our presence, and so 

 to work on the superstition of the natives that 

 they would be led to murder us. 



Two shamans had qviartered themselves on a 

 hunter, named Neewak, who lived only a few 

 hundred yards from the schoolhouse; and if they 

 had been two man-eating crocodiles, Mrs. Gam- 

 bell could not have been more afraid of them. 



One of them, Aabwook, frequently lurked 

 about our house after dark. Time and again, on 

 opening the outer door suddenly, I came vipon 

 him, listening there, or would catch a glimpse of 

 him stealing away in the darkness. What he 

 was doing or what he wanted was a vexatious 

 mystery ; but owing to our well-nigh defenceless 

 condition, I thought it prudent not to resent his 

 espionage. Yet all the while we were well aware 

 that both he and Toolluk would do us mischief 

 if they could ; and had they not been afraid that 

 Captain Healy, of the cutter Bear, wovild inquire 

 into it and hang them, I make little doubt they 

 would have had us killed. 



From the very nature of things, there can be 

 no truce between free schools and the sorcerers. 

 The schools spread useful knowledge ; the sham- 

 ans thrive on ignorance and superstition. When 

 ignorance goes their occupation will go, too, as 

 they well know. 



Like the priests of all false religions, the Eski- 

 mo shamans are not wholly hypocrites. They 



believe to some extent in the spirits and demons 

 which they pretend to invoke. But they are 

 cheats in most of the practices with which they 

 frighten the people. 



Old Toolluk and Aabwook were at once laugh- 

 able and terrifying. At fir.st, they came to school 

 with tlie others, to look on and watch us; for 

 they regarded us as rival white sorcerers. If we 

 possessed new ' ' ' charms " or " tricks of the 

 trade," they hoped to find them out for their own 

 use. 



The desire to learn our methods was probably 

 the chief reason why Aabwook played the Paul 

 Piy about our doors and windows. He also tried 

 to ' ' bewitch " us, use the power of the evil eye, 

 and make incantations which would cause the 

 Eskimo demons to enter our house. Moreover, 

 he was a cunning thief — a regular old fox. A 

 book would hardly suffice to contain all the irri- 

 tating, odious experiences which we had with 

 this unspeakable old knave. 



A shed and other outbuildings adjoining the 

 schoolhouse were built for us the second year, in 

 which to store our season's provisions, fuel and so 

 forth. They were placed at the end of our apart- 

 ment and offered fine lurking-places for the 

 shamans. 



There were no windows in the store-shed — a 

 strong structure of planks — and but one door, 

 that from our kitchen, opened into it. No one 

 could enter it save through our room doors; and 

 no native, so far as we knew, had done so. But 



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