352 THE POINT BARROW ESKIMO. 
the latter used the Indian style of snowshoes at least as early as 1826. 
Franklin! speaks of seeing, at Demarcation Point, a pair of snowshoes 
netted with cords of deerskin and shaped like those of the Indians of 
the Mackenzie. 
Most of the other Eskimo of Alaska, who need to use snowshoes at 
all, use a style of shoe very much less efficient and more roughly made, 
the rim being of heavy, rather crooked pieces of willow or alder. Simp- 
sows description will apply very well to this form, which is used even 
as far north as Icey Cape, whence Mr. Nelson brought home a pair. It 
also appears to be the prevailing, if not the only, form on the Siberian 
coast and St. Lawrence Island, judging from Nordinskiéld’s figure? 
and Mr. Nelson’s collections. 
Simpson says:° ‘The most common one is two pieces of alder, about 
two feet and a half long, curved towards each other at the ends, where 
they are bound together, and kept apart in the middle by two cross- 
pieces, each end of which is held in a mortise. Between the crosspieces 
is stretched a stout thong, lengthwise and across, for the foot to rest 
upon, with another which first forms a loop to allow the toes to pass 
beneath; this is carried round the back of the ankle to the opposite 
side of the foot, so as to sling the snowshoe under the joint of the great 
toe.” 
When there are toe and heel nettings, they are of seal thong with a 
large open mesh. The snowshoe from Norton Sound, figured by Dall,* 
is a rather neatly made variety of this form. South of the Yukon, the 
use of the snowshoe appears to be confined to the Indians. As shown 
by the Museum collections, the strings are always of the pattern de- 
scribed throughout the whole northwestern region.° 
Snowshoes appear to be rarely used among the eastern Eskimo. 
The only writer who mentions them is Kumlien.6 He says: ‘* When 
traveling over the frozen wastes in winter, they [i.e., the natives of 
Cumberland Gulf] use snowshoes. These are half-moon shaped, of 
whalebone, with sealskin thongs tightly drawn across. They are 
about 16 inches long. Another pattern is merely a frame of wood, 
about the same length and 8 or 10 inches wide, with sealskin thongs for 
the foot to rest on.” 
The latter is apparently quite like the western snowshoes described 
by Simpson. 
Staff—tThe only staff used by the young and vigorous is the shaft 
of the spear, when one is carried. The aged and feeble, however, sup- 
port their steps with one or two staffs about 5 feet long, often shod 
with bone or ivory. (The old man whom Franklin met on the Copper- 
mine River walked with the help of two sticks.*) Fig. 355 from a photo- 
graph represents old Yuksina from Nuwttk, with his two staffs, without 
which he was hardly able to walk. 
12d Exped., p. 142. 4 Alaska, p. 190, Fig. A. © Contributions. p. 42. 
2Veua, vol. 2, p.102 a ®See, also, Dall, Alaska, p. 71st Exp., vol. 2, p. 180. 
3Op. cit., p. 243. 190, and Figs. A and C, 
