226 THE ESKIMO ABOUT BERING STRAIT (ETH. ANN. 18 
lashed to the rails of umiaks at the point where the oars pass over them 
to preserve the cover from wear by friction. 
One of these strips, obtained at Port Clarence by Dr Dall, is shown 
in figure 35, plate Lxxvitt. It is flattened below, with one edge turned 
_ down, forming a slight lip; the upper portion is rounded, and has a 
projecting shoulder to retain the lashing which binds it to the rail of 
the boat. 
SPEAR AND PADDLE GUARDS 
In Bering strait, where considerable whale fishing is done, small 
ivory or bone forks are lashed to the bows of umiaks, just inside and 
between the front ends of the rails; in these the ends of the lances and 
spears rest, and through them the lines run out. The projecting sides 
of these forks are usually carved in the form of the heads and shoulders 
of white bears. They are made in two pieces and are united in the 
middle by an ivory or bone block mortised in and fastened by wooden 
or ivory pegs. In some instances the two halves are lashed together 
by rawhide cords passed through holes; on the outer edges are holes 
through which pass the lashings which attach them to the bow. 
Figure 33, plate LXxvi11, shows an example of these lance guards 
from the Diomede islands; another (figure 37, plate LXx vim) from Cape 
Prince of Wales, has been illustrated among the mythological figures 
to show the “thunderbird” which is etched on its surface (see plate 
CVIIa@). 
To prevent the spears and paddles from falling off the sloping deck 
of the kaiak, when not in use, there are used guards consisting of 
upstanding, spur-like pieces of bone, ivory, or deerhorn, which rest on 
the gunwale on each side, and are fastened to the crossline of the kaiak, 
which passes through a hole in the base. This base of the guard is 
flattened and sometimes heavily scored with grooves to give it a firmer 
hold against the surface of the skin covering. The guards are made 
in a variety of forms, the simplest of which is a subtriangular piece 
with the broad base downward. 
Figure 4, plate LXXVII, represents one of these guards, which was 
obtained at Konigunugumut; it is rounded in outline and narrow 
above, where it ends in the form of a tail of a white whale. Another, 
from Chalitmut (figure 3, plate LXxvu1), is curved over at the end and 
pierced with a narrow, pear-shape hole through the tip. 
Another simple form is a flattened, shell-like piece of ivory, having 
the bottom curved or flat for resting on the surface of the cover, with a 
thin, flattened or oval upturned point, the outer side of which is gen- 
erally covered with etched patterns. Sometimes the inner surface is 
also ornamented in the same manner, Figure 8, plate Lxxyil1l, from 
Anogogmut; figure 10, plate Lxxvim, from Kushunuk, and figures 7 
and 9, plate Lxxvill, from Sfugunugumut, represent examples of this 
kind of guard. 
