STUBBORN LEARNERS 



first Eskimo house-improvements prize ! I walked 

 along several times to see how he was getting along 

 with his new house and his new window; and I 

 found that another man, quite a poor fellow, who 

 was building himself a tiny hut near by, was also 

 making a window to open. He had seen Tomas 

 at work, and, of course, was inquisitive. " Hello, 

 Tomas, what sort of a window are you making ? " 

 " Ah," says Tomas, " new sort, very fine ; see, it 

 opens on hinges." " Piovok (that looks good) : teach 

 me how to do it ; I must have a window like that." 



Ay, even reforms can be infectious ! 



I do not for a moment want to take the credit 

 for those windows that opened on hinges ; it would 

 be unfair to generations of hardworking missionaries 

 if 1 did, for there were windows on hinges before ever 

 I came to Labrador ; but I saw a solution to my 

 problem in that little incident. It was a case of 

 working on the imitative faculties of these people, 

 and trusting to reforms to become habits. 



What stubborn learners they are ! Tell them to 

 do a thing, and they will do it out of mere obedience 

 so long as your eye is on them ; but leave them to 

 their own devices, and they slip back to their old 

 ways at once. They do not see the " why " of things. 

 When I ordered sanitary reforms, they always used 

 to raise their eyebrows. " Why should we do that ? " 

 they would say, " our fathers never did it : it is not a 

 custom of the people." 



But here was a peg to hang things on : the 

 Eskimos would imitate. Imitate ! I have never seen 

 any one to equal them. 



When I put on my skates, so as to have the 



distinction of saying that I had skated on the North 



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