502 THE ESKIMO ABOUT BERING STRAIT [eth.ann.18 



SO that his face looked backward. Instantly the heads of all the vil- 

 lagers turned around on their shoulders and the backs of their heads 

 rested where their faces should have been, while their bodies were in 

 the position of rushing forward. On getting the usual promise from 

 them, Ak'-chik-chii'-guk replaced the villagers' heads, and the brothers 

 were directed to make inquiries at the next place. 



In that village they were attacked again, and the villagers were 

 forced to put their hands behind their backs by the strong magic of 

 the elder brother. Here the people told the brothers that their sister 

 was in the next village, but that she was the wife of a very powerful 

 and wicked shaman, and they tried to keep the brothers from going on, 

 saying that harm would come to them if they did. No heed was given 

 to this, and they went on until they came in sight of the village. 



There they stopped while Ak'-chik-chu'-giik smeared his hands and 

 face with the decayed fish roe and changed his fine deerskin clothing 

 for the old bird-skin garments his mother had put in the boat. Then 

 he coiled himself up in the bottom of the boat, bending down his 

 shoulders until he looked like a feeble old man. His brothers were 

 instructed what to do, and, rowing on, they soon landed at the village. 

 Then the brothers started to carry Ak'-chik-chu'-guk into the village, 

 when they were met by several people, among whom was the bad shaman. 

 He asked them why they carried with them such a miserable old man; 

 to which they replied that he did not belong to them, but they had 

 found him on the shore and brought him along with them. 



Asking about their sister, they were told that they could see her 

 when they had carried the old man in the kashim. Ak'-chik-chu'-guk 

 was placed in the kashim, where they left him lying apparently helpless. 

 Then they were taken to another house and shown a young woman 

 dressed in fine furs, and were told that she was their sister. The two 

 elder brothers believed this, but the youngest one was suspicious of 

 some wrong, but said nothing and went back to the kashim with the 

 others. 



When the brothers were inside the kashim, the shaman went down 

 to the beach, where he untied the lashings of the umiak, rolled the 

 framework up in the cover, and hid it. When night fell and everyone 

 was asleep, the youngest brother crept out and went to the shaman's 

 house. In the passageway he heard a hoarse, choking sound, and at 

 first was frightened, but soon felt stronger and asked, "Who is there f 

 No reply came, and he went forward carefully until he reached the 

 door beyond which he had heard the strange sound. He listened a 

 moment, and then pushed the door open and went in. 



There on the floor lay his sister dressed in coarse, heavy sealskins 

 and bound hand and foot, with a cord drawn tightly about her neck and 

 another fastened her tongue. Very quickly she was released, and then 

 told him that the wicked shaman had kept her in this way and treated 

 her very cruelly; her brother put his hand on her breast and found her 



