Ethnographical collections from East Greenland. 397 



head at the end so much, that the basal socket of the head comes 

 just over the point of the 'loose shaft' in straight continuation of the 

 wooden shaft and its basal barb faces to the left or in towards the 

 kaiak. 



The large lance is placed on the left side of the man, mainly 

 on the after-deck of the kaiak. Its head is directed backwards and 

 is pushed in under the last cross-strap on the deck. 



The kaiak scraper (snow and frost scraper) lies as a rule in 

 under one of the cross-straps just in front of the man-hole; the 

 throwing stick for the bird dart is at the same place. 



HUNTING METHODS. 



I shall give here a brief account of the methods used by the 

 natives in hunting the animals, which are caught (or were earlier 

 caught) at Ammassalik (cf. pp. 48 — 51). 



It falls to the men to carry on the hunting of all the large 

 animals, seals, whales and bears, formerly also the reindeer, and 

 these are captured from the kaiak or on the ice, on a sledge trip 

 or on foot. In whale hunting the men went out in the 'women's boats' 

 (umiak). Even the fishing of the small caplins or ammassät which 

 are caught at Qingaaq furthest up in Ammassawik Fjord in spring 

 (p. 54), is carried on as a rule by the men, whereas in West Green- 

 land this is the women's work. Only the animals and plants of 

 little esteem, which are resorted to in times of famine, can be taken 

 by the women. The foxes and ptarmigan, sea-scorpions, salmon, 

 mussels and seaweed can be taken by the women as well as the 

 men. Widows with children to provide for take part in the hunt- 

 ing of foxes and birds but never seals ^). 



Seals. — From the kaiak the men hunt the different kinds of 

 seals, especially the common fjord-seal (Phoca foetida), the smallest 

 species, which occurs everywhere in the fjords and along the 

 coast the whole year round, the crested seal (Cystophora cristata) 

 and the Greenland seal (Phoca groenlandica), which are hunted in 

 the autumn out on the outer reefs. The other seals, bearded seal 

 (Erignathus barbatus) and harbour seal (Phoca vitulina), walrus 



') Tradition and tales speak, however, of women who went in the kaiak and 

 caught seals (p. 252) and Holm met with two women who owned a kaiak (pp. 

 67 and 187, cf. 191) on the southern part of the coast, at Akorninarmiut. But 

 these cases are great rarities. Outside Greenland seal-hunting women are men- 

 tioned (Repulse Bay) Ъу Rae; see Boas (1888) p. 485. 



