FEEDING THE SICK FOLKS 



see that where Nature has taught them the need, 

 they lay up store. They dry reindeer meat after 

 Easter, and keep it for the weeks when the ice is 

 cracking and seals are hard to find ; they dry codfish 

 in the summer, simply hanging it in the open air 

 unsalted, and use it for food between the going of 

 the codfish and the coming of the seals in autumn ; 

 they store up the berries for the winter. With 

 these exceptions, which are long-established customs, 

 the Eskimos are not a thrifty folk. Even the 

 promise of a ten per cent, interest on their savings 

 does not make these hunters see the value of a bank 

 balance: they like to handle the worth of their 

 earnings at once, and in solid substance. 



286 



