MURDOCH. ] TOOL BOX, TOOL BAG. 187 
braid, and, gradually growing too short by being broken and knotted 
together again, was lengthened out with whatever came to hand. 
No. 89862 [1593], Fig. 165), is a large box, of a very peculiar shape, 
best understood from the figure. The outside is much weathered, but 
appears to have been roughly carved, and the excavation of the box 
and cover is very rudely done, perhaps with a stone tool. A hole in the 
larger end is mended by a patch of wood chamfered off to fit the hole 
and sewed on round the edges with “‘over-and-over” stitches of whale- 
pone. The string is arranged in permanent loops, under which the 
cover can be slipped off and on. 
The arrangement, which is rather complicated, is as follows: On one 
side of the box, one-half inch from the edge and about 7 inches from 
each end, are two pairs of holes, one-half inch apart. Into each pair is 
fastened, by means of knots on the inside, a loop of very stout sinew 
braid, 3 inches long, and similar loops of seal thong, 5 inches long, are 
Fia. 166.—Tool bag of wolverine skin. 
fastened into corresponding pairs of holes on the other side. A piece 
of seal thong is fastened with a becket-hitch into the loop of seal thong 
at the small end of the box, passes through both braid loops on the 
other side, and is carried over through the loop of seal thong at the 
large end. The end of the thong is knotted into one of the pairs of 
holes left by the breaking away of a stitch at the edge of the wooden 
patch above mentioned. 
All these boxes are very old and were painted inside with red ocher, 
which has turned dark brown from age. Tools are nowadays kept ina 
large oblong, flat satchel, ikqixbwin, which has an arched handle of 
ivory or bone stretched lengthwise across the open mouth. These bags 
are always made of skin with the hair out, and the skins of wolverines’ 
heads are the most desired for this purpose. The collection contains 
four such bags. No. 89794 [1018], Fig. 166, is the type of these bags. 
The bottom of the bag is a piece of short-haired brown deerskin, with 
