May, 1919] 



The Canadian Field-Naturalist 



29 



wards. The ribs are now shaped and fitted and 

 their ends inserted in the upper side-pieces and 

 secured with wooden pins. The ribs are usually 

 from two to six inches apart. The other longitudinal 

 strips are then attached to the sides, with a similar 

 piece along the middle of the bottom, which, like 

 the other canoes described, is destitute of a keel. 



The sealskin covering is sewn together and ap- 

 plied to the framework wet, so that it stretches tightly 

 as it dries. The sewing, as in the case of the 

 Algonkian canoe, is done by several women working 

 together in order to complete the job at one sitting. 

 A double waterproof stitching renders the seams 

 water-tight. 



of Yukon Territory and Alaska possesses features 

 which give it an intermediate position between the 

 umiak and the canoe of the region to the south and 

 east. A canoe-like feature is the wedge-shaped bow 

 and stern. A pointed or leaf-shaped paddle is 

 used. 



The umiak is said to have been entirely aban- 

 doned on the east coast of Labrador.' In parts cf 

 the latter region and in Alaska it is used largely by 

 the men for whale and walrus hunting as well as 

 for general purposes. Lengthy journeys or migra- 

 tions are often undertaken in it and its capacity 

 is said to be remarkable. 



The bow and stern of the Labrador umiak are 



DISTRIBUTION MAP, the 

 E.skimo kayak and um 

 cov<-red l)y ol)li(iue lines. 



According to E. W. Hawkes, from whose memoir 

 on the Labrador Eskimo the foregoing description is 

 taken, "Great speed is maintained by the Eskimo in 

 their frail kayaks. It is said that a single Eskimo 

 in a kayak will propel it as fast as two white men 

 will a canoe. The Eskimo ventures out in a sea 

 that an Indian would not dare attempt. . ."" 



The umiak, an open craft, also used by the 

 Eskimo, presents a somewhat different appearance 

 from the kayak due partly to its not being decked 

 over and partly to its being rather deeper and 

 clumsier in form. In other respects it does not 

 differ materially, a fact which would suggest it as 

 the form from which the kayak was derived. 



An open skin-covered boat used by the Kutchin 



dotted poiiiun .sliowing the 

 iak region, and the jiart 

 tlie liirch-liark canoe region. 



wider than those of the Alaskan, which gives it a 

 clumsier appearance. It is usually about twenty- 

 five feet long and is steered with a rudder, quite 

 likely an Asiatic borrowing, as are also the oars, 

 rowlocks and sails. In Alaska the umiak is pro- 

 pelled by the more aboriginal paddle, the steering 

 being done with an e.xtra long and heavy one. 

 SAILS. 



Sails were nowhere used as an integral feature 

 of navigation e.xcept along the North Pacific Coast, 

 where there is also a suspicion of Russian or other 

 Asiatic influence. 



The light and rather easily upset birch bark 

 canoe was evidently unsuited for propulsion by such 

 a contrivance, except in very light breezes, or when 



•iHawkes, E. W., "The Labrador Eskimo," 

 Memoir 91, Geol. Survey, Ottawa, p. 72. 



Tibid., p. 68. 



