102 REPORT ON THE INTRODUCTION OF 



often caught on the ice, but it is not uncommon to shoot and spear them 

 in the water. 



In hunting - either the seal or walrus on the ice it is customary and 

 far safer to wear snowshoes, as it is necessary to travel more or less 

 across broken ice, and without them, unless great caution is used, one 

 is liable to step between the cakes, and an accident of this character 

 is apt to meet with fatal results. 



The trap used by the Eskimo in catching foxes is an ingenious con- 

 trivance. It is made of a piece of wood about 8 inches long, with a 

 hole through it lengthwise, and in the middle is a slot cut large enough 

 to inclose a crosspiece or lever, with a point of iron or ivory in the end, 

 intended to be buried in the skull of the fox. Attached to this lever 

 is a piece of seal thong, extending through the wood in both directions, 

 and at either end is a stick made to turn, thus twisting the thong so 

 as to tighten the crossbar to as high a tension as is needed. The bait 

 is tied to a piece of thong, and when nibbled at trips the lever and 

 the fox is trapped. This kind of trap answers an excellent purpose, 

 but is not as compact as that used by the whites, and like most arti- 

 cles of Eskimo manufacture gives way to the most improved ones of 

 civilization as fast as they can procure the necessary means to obtain 

 them. 



The Eskimo, in hunting ptarmigan in the spring, usually meet with 

 good success, and it is an interesting sight to see them catch them. 



They use a net made of sinew woven similar to that used in catching 

 seal and fish, but the meshes are about 1£ inches square. It is usually 

 about 20 fathoms long and 18 inches w T ide. They take the net to the 

 tundra land, and when a flock of ptarmigan is seen stretch it out, fast- 

 ening a stake at either end. Usually two natives go together in hunt- 

 ing ptarmigan, and after the net is stretched they circle around them 

 and slowly drive them toward the net. When the birds reach it, 

 iustead of flying over they try to get through, and usually all that are 

 within the scope of it get so entangled in the meshes that they are 

 unable to extricate themselves before they are caught. Frequently a 

 single setting of a net will result in a catch of fifteen or twenty ptarmi- 

 gan. 



The ptarmigan in size and habits resemble the prairie chicken, and 

 in their summer plumage are almost identical in color, but at the 

 approach of winter the feathers generally assume a lighter shade, which 

 eventually becomes pure white. They hatch out their young about 

 the middle of July, and until nearly grown are easily run down. 



The first hunting for ptarmigan I ever did was in company with 

 three Eskimo. I was the only one in the party who had a gun, and 

 took the natives with me to beat up the ptarmigan, as I had no dog. 

 After my first shot I of course expected to wait until the birds had 

 settled down before proceeding further, and was amused to see the 

 natives all start after the birds on the run. They were soon out of ear- 



