272 THE POINT BARROW ESKIMO. 
etc., is never very abundant, and occurs chiefly in the season of open 
water, when it is captured from the umiak with harpoon and rifle, but 
they are sometimes found in the winter, as two were killed at breathing 
holes in the rough ice January 8, 183835, 
The walrus.—The walrus occurs only during the season of open water, 
and is almost always captured from the umiak with the large harpoon 
and rifle. The whaling boats usually find a few, especially late in the 
season, and after the trading parties have gone in the summer the 
natives who remain are generally out in the boats a good deal of the 
time looking for walrus and seals. As a general thing walrus are espe- 
cially plenty in September, when much loose ice is moving backwards 
and forwards with the current, frequently sleeping in large herds upon 
sakes of ice. The boats, which are out nearly every day at this season 
with volunteer crews, not regularly organized as for whaling, paddle 
as near as they can to these sleeping herds and try to shoot them in 
the head, aiming also to “ fasten” to as many as they can with the har- 
poon and float as they hurry into the water. A harpooned walrus is 
followed up with the boat and shot with the rifle when a chance is 
offered. Swimming walruses are chased with the boat and “ fastened 
to” by darting the harpoon. When a walrus is killed it is towed up to 
the nearest cake of ice and cut up on the spot. We never knew of the 
kaiak ‘being used in walrus-hunting, as is the custom among the eastern 
Eskimo. 
The whale.—The pursuit of the“ bowhead” whale (Balzena mysticetus), 
so valuable not only for the food furnished by its flesh and “ blackskin ” 
and the oil from its blubber, but for the whalebone, which serves so 
many useful purposes in the arts of the Eskimo and is besides the 
chief article of trade with the ships, is carried on with great regularity 
and formality. In the first place all the umialiks (boat-owners) or those 
who are to be the captains of whaling wniaks, before the deer hunters 
start out in January, bring all the gear to be used in the whale fishery 
to the kt/dyigi, where it is consecrated by a ceremony consisting of 
drumming and singing, perhaps partaking of the nature of an incan- 
tation. 
Capt. Herendeen was the only one of our party who witnessed this 
ceremony, Which took place at Utkiavwin on January 9, 1883, and he 
did not bring back a detailed account of the proceedings. During 
part of the ceremony all the umialiks were seated in a row upon the 
floor, and a woman passed down the line marking each across the face 
with an oblique streak of blacklead. As soon as the deer hunters re- 
turn in the spring they begin getting ready for the whales, covering 
the boats, fitting lines to harpoons, and putting gear of all sorts in per- 
fect order. Every article to be used in whaling—harpoons, lances, pad- 
dies, and even the timbers of the boats—must be scraped perfectly 
clean.! This work is generally done by the umialik himself and his 
‘Compare Egede, Greenland, p. 102. The whale ‘can’t bear sloven and dirty habits.” 
