NELSON] 



TOPS, BUZZES, AND OTHER TOYS 



341 



Fig. 122— Top from Cape 

 Princeof Wales (about J). 



These are commonly of disk shape, thiu at the edge and perforated in 

 the center for a peg. One from Cape Prince of Wales (figure 122) is of 

 walrus ivory; it is 2i inches in diameter and has a hole an inch wide 

 in the middle, which is closed by a neatly fitted wooden plug of the 

 same thickness as the top, through which passes a spindle-shape peg 

 four inches long. This is the general style of top used in the region 

 mentioned, but another kind is made to be spun with a guiding stick 

 and cord; these are often used by men as well as 

 by boys. 



On the lower Yukon the children amuse them- 

 selves in winter by spinning tops on the wooden 

 floor of the kashim. The game is played by each 

 child spinning its toj) and then hurrying out 

 through the long passage to the entrance, making 

 a complete circuit around the outside of the 

 building, then back to the interior, trying to 

 return before the top has ceased spinning. These 

 toys are spun between the two hands, the upper 

 part of the spindle being held upright between 

 the palms. 



Among other games, the children also have a 

 buzz, usually made by stringing a doubly perfo- 

 rated, flattened disk on a cord. The two ends of the cord are tied 

 together and' the ends of the loop thus formed are held in their hands, 

 so that by tightening and relaxing their hold the disk is caused to 

 twirl about, exactly as is done with a similar toy by civilized chil- 

 dren. These buzzes are usually made of wood, ivory, or bone, 

 although of recent years some are made of metal. I obtained one at 

 St Michael made from the adjoining phalangeal bones of some animal, 



probably a seal, still 

 united by their carti- 

 lage. The string is a 

 single cord of sinew, 

 which is made fast be- 

 tween the two middle 

 bones, and at each end 

 of the string is tied a 



Fio 123— Toy woodpecker (i). ShOrt CrOSS-Stick for 



grasping. 

 Another toy obtained at St Michael, represented in figure 123, is the 

 image of a woodpecker made of wood fastened to a small wooden 

 spatula by means of a stout quill in place of legs. The surface of the 

 spatula is dotted over with red paint to represent food. By means of 

 a string fastened to the point of the bird's beak and passing down 

 through a hole in the spatula, the child is enabled to pull the bird's 

 head down. On releasing it, the elasticity of the quill throws it up 



