LITTLE JOHN 



well-built man with brawny muscles, but standing 

 but an inch or two over four feet. 



That was my first meeting with little John. 



A day or two later I was along the village with a 

 camera, when the same gruff voice hailed me from 

 the roof of a house. 



"Hai," it said; "is that the thing that makes 

 pictures ? " 



" Yes," said I, and looked around for the owner 

 of the voice. 



There he was, perched upon the roof of one of the 

 biggest houses, armed with a hammer and a bundle 

 of shingles for mending leaky places. "Aksunai, 

 John," said I. 



" Ahaila," answered John ; " has it got its habits 

 with it ? " 



" Habits " (piusingit) I took to refer to the plates 

 which are necessary for the making of a picture, and 

 John's word, which means " the usual things" as I 

 found later by digging into the dictionary in which 

 one of the old missionaries has recorded his success in 

 translating ideas into a form understandable to the 

 Eskimo mind was quite a proper one under the 

 circumstances. 



"Yes," said I, "it has still a habit unused." 



John began to clamber down from his roof. 



" Can it make pictures inside a house ? " 



" Illale (of course)." 



" Then come and make a picture in my house " ; 



and he led the way among the snarling sledge dogs 



! that snoozed in the porch, and flung the door open 



\ for me crying " Itterit, itterit (go in, go in) ; Katli, 



Ikaivoguk (we are both coming, Katli)." 



John was all bustle, afraid that the camera might 



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