484 
Greenland. or innuigorpok, that is,’ he is as modest as a’ Greens 
Yo lander.” Althoughthere may be some presumption in this, 
Dresz, 
yet it cannot be denied, that they are modest, friendly, and 
not litigious; generally compliant ; but, when exaspera- 
ted, they are so desperate, that no. danger deters them 
from their revenge. | Although very ignorant, ‘they are 
by no means stupid. They learn easily to read and to 
write their language, not only the children, but alsomen 
advanced to 20 and 30 years of age. Some of them, be- 
sides their maternal tongue, speak Danish very well, and 
they have a great inclination to mechanics. As their sup- 
ply of food is but precarious, their patience in hunger is 
astonishing. : Their strength, in proportion to the size of 
their bodies, ‘is not Jess wonderful. Pinched with hun- 
ger forssome days, the man is’ nevertheless able to’ row 
out, and to manage his kajak in the:most boisterous sea. 
Their manner of clothing is quite correspondent to the 
climate. Men, Women, and children, from the tine they 
are three years old, are clothed nearly in the same 
‘manner. | Their ordinary dress is a’sort of close frock, or 
rather robe, which reaches to the’ knees. It has at the 
upper part a round) hole, :sufficient to put the head 
through, and not large enough to admit the cold. The 
sleeves are rather wide on the shoulders, becoming nar« 
rower as they reach the wrists. A hood similar'in shape 
to the cowl used by monks, -is attached ‘to the back of 
the frock. This is drawn over the head in winter or bad 
weather. In warm weather they generally walk bare- 
headed. Some of them now use the round hats of the 
Europeans. Their breeches are nearly like those of Euro- 
peans. Their stockings are in summer of seal-skin, in 
winter of dog or rein-deer skin ; and those of the women 
are of fowl-skin. Their boots are made in a very neat and 
ingenious manner ; sometimes)of seal-skin, sometimes of 
rein-deer skin. The frocks are ‘also made of seal or 
rein-deer skin. At the seams where the different skins 
are sewed together, they are usually adorned with nar- 
row thongs of different skin, sometimes coloured red ; 
they are worn with the hairy side outwards. In cold 
weather they use under the frock a shirt made of fowl- 
skin; of the Alca pica, or Anas mollissima, or Pelicanus 
carbo. ; 
When at sea in their small canoes (called kajat), they 
use a sort of frock impenetrable to water, with the hait 
taken away, called Erysak. The bottom part is fastened 
round a ring or hoop made of bone; and this hoop is 
joined to the hole in which the Greenlander sits, so that 
no water can penetrate it. They have also another 
frock made very ingeniously from the intestines of whales, 
dolphins, or seals, prepared with such skill as to resemble, 
in a great measure, our goldbeater’s leaf: The clothes of 
the women differ very little from those of the men. ‘The 
sleeves are very high and wide on the ‘shoulder, and 
reach only to the elbow. They are.cut out downwards 
from the top of the thigh, and form a long tongue-formed 
fap both behind and before, the end of which reaches to 
the knee, Itis very carefully sewed, and bordered round 
the body with narrow thongs of white or coloured leather, 
sometimes of red cloth. They wear breeches, with very 
short drawers underneath. Their common boots are 
made of black or brown. seal-skin,: their! dress bootsof 
white or red coloured seal-skin, reaching over. the kneés. 
Shoes are rarcly used either by the men or women. 
They live in winter in houses, and in summer in tents. 
When the summer is over, which is generally at the end 
ei August, the women belonging to the family or to the 
‘them. Every thing about the house smells 
GREENLAND. 
house are very busy in repairing anold’or in building a Gree 
new house. ‘It is done in a very few days; and this las = 
bour resembles the liveliness of an ant-hill," Some carry — 
stones, others bring sod ; several turf, timber, shrubs) of 
earth. The walls are’ made of water-worn” stones,’ put Hou: 7 
together with turf or sod instead of mortar 3 and the roof 
is formed of pieces of floating timber.’ It is flat, and'is 
‘covered with shrubs, turf or sod, and’ earth. The stones 
are taken from the shores, as they never build a house at 
a greater distance from the sea than 20 or 30 ‘paces; the 
timbers are picked up'from the sea during the summer. 
Their houses are sometimes regular; sometimes’ oblong 
squares ; being from 12 to 18 feet in len; from 10 
to 12 feet in breadth. The height is generally six feet? The 
walls are at their base two feet, and on the top one foot 
thick. » The entrance is usually under the earth, two feet 
high, two feet broad, and from 12 to 15 feet‘long.” It is 
in the centre of the house, and generally faces’ the south: 
The house has no door, and one must alwaysereep in‘on 
hands and feet. Above the entrance is one,’ and somes 
times two windows, which are made ‘of the’ intestines of 
whales, or dolphins, or seals, sewed together. The house 
consists of only one room, at the back of which there’isa 
kind of stage, raised from one foot to one and a half'from 
the ground, and extending the whole length of the house: 
It is covered with seal-skin, and is used’as bench, ‘chair; 
table, and bed-stead. Being divided in the front by per- 
pendicular standing timbers, it has the appearance’of low 
cow-sheds or stables; separated by skins, | Each ‘family 
occupies such a division: They ‘sit on this ‘bench ‘the 
whole day, the men with their legs hanging “down, ‘the 
women generally cross-legged. Each family has at least 
one burning lamp, made by the Greenlanders themselves 
of pot-stone. All round the margin of the’ vessel oiled 
moss is placed, which serves. instead of a 'wick-; and the 
vessel contains about a quart of oil. ‘The lamp’serves 
them as candle, chimney, and cooking’ fire; and? is ‘at- 
tended-by the women. On the roof of the house, over 
the lamps, are racks for the purpose of drying’ clothes; 
boots, gloves, &c. The extremities of the large bench 
on both sides of the house are considered to be the best 
places, being most removed from the entrance, and there- 
fore given to the first women of the house, or to travel 
lers of distinction. A narrow bench runs along on both 
sides, and under the windows of the house; and in this 
place strangers of less consideration sit and sleep. ~The 
houses are very well heated, and the heat is increased by 
the uncommon evaporation of the natives. A European 
is obliged to go out ‘occasionally, to get fresh/air. The 
interior of their houses looks very well at the beginning 
of the winter, as long as’ any degree of order exists in 
them. But this is over ina very short time; and even 
this irregularity and confusion is exceeded’ by their nas-. 
tiness and stench. They not only keep’a number of dead 
seals, fowls, &c. in their warm houses, but they also gut 
them there. This, together with the bones, and rotten 
or halfeaten fragments of boiled and raw flesh, occasions 
several heaps of filth, which are never removed, till, 
from their bulk, it becomes troublesome to over 
train’ oil 
and smoke ; and every part of it is as filthy as can be 
imagined. It is revolting to Europeans 'to see their dir- 
ty hands and face, almost always dripping oil; their meat 
dressed ani eaten in such a disgusting manner ; and their 
nasty clothes, literally alive with vermin. They are also 
very dirty in cooking their meat; they seldom wash a 
