Mar. 1859. INFORMATION FROM ESQUIMAUX. 231 



Perhaps tlie records of arcliitecture do not fur- 

 nish another instance of a dwelling-house so 

 cheaply constructed ! 



We gave them to understand that we were 



anxious to barter with them, and very cautiously 



approached the real object of our visit. A naval 



button upon one of their dresses afforded the 



opportunity ; it came, they said, from, some white 



people who were starved upon an island where 



there are salmon (that is, in a river) ; and 



that the iron of which their knives were made 



came from the same place. One of these men 



said he had been to the island to obtain wood 



and iron, but none of them had seen the white 



men. Another man had been to " Ei-wil-lik " 



(Eepulse Bay), and counted on his fingers seven 



individuals of Rae's party whom he remembered 



having seen. 



These Esquimaux had nothing to eat, and no 

 other clothing than their ordinary double dresses 

 of fur ; they would not eat our biscuit or salt pork, 

 but took a small quantity of bear's blubber and 

 some water. They slept in a sitting posture, 

 with their heads leaning forward on their 

 breasts. Next morning we travelled about 10 

 miles further, by which time we were close to 

 Cape Victoria ; beyond this I would not go, 

 much as they wished to lead us on ; we there- 



