102 ANTHROPOLOGICAL SURVEY IN ALASKA [BTH.AKH.48 



pictures of the natives, and at the same time collecting all the 

 antiquities they could bring him. We go to see his collection, but 

 find him not home; has gone for mail. The rare mail in these regions 

 is, of course, the most important of events. So back to the school 

 (a good many rods from the sod house part of the native village to 

 the left), and then— it is now near noon — to the mission, a good 

 mile from the school and more from the village. 



Road staked on one side with whale ribs about 2 rods distance. 

 Flats on both sides show many parts of bleached human bones. They 

 are a part of the old extensive burial grounds. Unfortunately, about 

 two years ago the predecessor of the present missionary had most of 

 the skulls and bones collected and put in a hole in the new cemetery, 

 now seen in the distance to the right of the mission. This new 

 burial place is surrounded by a unique whale-rib fence. Reach mis- 

 sion, but no one there. Does not look good. Try one building and 

 door after another — no one — learn later that the missionary has no 

 family. Twenty minutes to 1. Nothing remains but to go back to 

 the school for some lunch. So leave my raincoat, camera, and re- 

 maining bags (expecting to do main work on the buried bones) and 

 hurry back to the school, which I reach just after 1, and, thanks to 

 their late clock, just in time for a modest lunch, but with a real hot 

 cup of coffee. Queer that the only genuinely hot cups of coffee I 

 got on this journey were furnished by Eskimo — for Mrs. Moyer. the 

 wife of the teacher, is an Eskimo. 



Then comes the mail and Mr. La Voy, and I go to see the latter's 

 collection. 



Find a mass of old and modern material, of stone, bone, and 

 wood. All the older things are from an old site on the point. It is 

 an important and large site, as found later (at least 50 houses), which 

 the natives (getting coffee, tea, chewing gum, chocolate, candy, etc., 

 for what they find) are now busy digging over and ruining for 

 scientific exploration. Women dig as well as men, confining them- 

 selves to from 2 to 3 uppermost feet that have thawed ; but even thus 

 finding a lot of specimens. Bones, of course, and other things are 

 left and no observation whatever on the site is made. It is a pity. 



Mr. La Voy donates some stone objects, mainly scrapers, and then 

 I go with a native he employs to the " diggings.'' Find much already 

 turned over — one woman actually digging — but very much more still 

 remaining. Examine everything — site evidently not ancient but of 

 the richest — and then return with the woman to get some of her 

 " cullings." 



On the way am called by a man whose sod house (semisubter- 

 ranean) we pass. We sit on the top of his house and soon establish 

 a regular trading place, with a big flat stone as a counter. One 



