CRUISE OF THE STEAMER CORWIN. 49 



in the mass of ice over which we had heen traveling- It is almost inconceivable how such a 

 rank vec-etation can be sustained under such conditions. If we stood m one place any length 

 of time the spongy moss became satiirated, and soon a p-nl (,f dark-colored water made our 



iwsition uutenaljle. , . ■ 



Besides the moss berries, and stunted willows, chistrrs nl spruce trees, some measuring 

 six amreio-ht inches in diameter, have taken root and gn.wn in the thin strata of soil ovei- 

 lying the Tee To investigate this subi^ct thoroughly would require more time than I have at 

 mv command, but from the superlicial investigation <.f this peculiar formation I am inclined 

 to believe that here are the remains.. f what was a moving, rushing river, lying frozen and still 

 under the dank moss an.l black earth of the Arctic tundra. 



On the afternoon of August 21 the expedition reached the Indian settlement where we had 

 left a cache of provisions, boat sails, &c.. in coming up, and we camped on a sand beach oppo- 

 site We found our effects had been well taken care of during our absence by the two old 

 women who live here. During the recent freshet in tlie river they had been compelled to 

 carry the coal which we had left on the shore far up the steep bank, and I could hardly believe 

 that the feat had been accomplished unaided by the decrepit-looking old women; but upon 

 inquiry I learned that such was really the case. 



Apropos of this instance, illustrating the strength of the Innuit women, another case came 

 under my obs.n'vation whic-h I consider worth relating. When about to abandon the launch 

 in the summer of 1S84. I wished to oljtaiu a stone large enough to serve as an anchor, and as 

 none was available on the spot, a woman volunteered to go some distanc-e up a small trilmtary 

 of the river and bring one .lown to us in her boat. When she returned with the st(,ne. aiul 1 

 noted its size, I was truly astonishe.l. It required two of my party, who were both rcmarkal .ly 

 strong men to lift the stone from the boat. It could not have weighed less than eight hundred 

 pounds, and how the woman got it into her frail bark canoe without assistance is m.n-e than I 

 can understand Tah-tah-rok. to whom I went' for an explanation of the method pursued, told 

 me that she had first filled her boat with small branches of spruce, and then, ch..osing a part 

 of the bank where the boafs rail would be on a level with the ground, had rolle.l the stone 

 over on to the pliant boughs, and so avoided lifting it at all. Afterwards the spruce branches 

 were removed separately and the stone allowed to gradually sink to its proper position in the 

 bottom of the boat. The fact that a l)ody weighs less when submerged is as familiar to these 

 untutored children of nature as to the most learned professor of natural philosophy. 



So much has been written of these people which gives the impression that they are slug- 

 <rish in disposition and intellectually inferior that I feel a natural hesitancy in advancing 

 opinions (formed, it is true, by a short experience) which would seem to refute the tales ot 

 their stupidity The fact remains, however, that in all my dealings with the natives of this 

 reo-ion embracing those from Cape Prince of Wales to Point Hope, and including the Noatak, 

 Kowak, and Selawik tribes, I have never yet seen a more naturalUi intelligent set ot men. 

 They seem remarkably <iuick to a.hipt themselves to the wants and habits of civilized men; 

 and "if progress is the 'result of intdligence there seems to be no good reason why certain civil- 

 izing instruction shouhl not be given them in order that their condition might be improved 

 and the hard struggle for existence rol)bed of some of its terrors. 



As a general rule (I might almost call it an universal one), the natives are honest, good- 

 natured, and always hospitable, and if at times they prc^ve mendacious, it would seem charita- 

 ble to believe that this deflection from the moral code is caused by a desire to make it pleasant 

 for the traveler temporarily made their guest. What these people need, however, is a httle 

 instruction on the benefits of habits of cleanliness. At present some of their customs are dis- 

 gusting beyond description; but they are easily induced to change their habits of life when it 

 is known that they are the source of annoyance to the white man. During the time I was 

 absent from the launch I was necessarily thrown in very close contact with the Indians, and I 

 found it only necessary to mention any of their habits as being objectionable to have it imme- 

 diately drc^jped. It was my custom, in order to avoid the vermin (with which they are liber- 

 ally supplied), to take a bath every night and make a complete change in my underclothing. 

 H. Ex. 153 7 



