Alaskan and Mackenzie Delta Traditions 69 a 



and partook of a scanty meal at night; then during the winter he ate a little 

 seal meat in the morning and nothing all the rest of the day. Spring came 

 round and he cleaned up his skin boat, replaced everything that was worn or dirty, 

 made new paddles, and had everything ready to launch and start out at a 

 moment's notice as soon as the whaling should commence. Meanwhile some 

 Eskimos had gone out sealing at the open leads. One evening a man brought 

 back word that he had seen a whale spouting. Then the rich man took out a 

 seal-poke, extracted from it some seal blubber, and distributed it amongst the 

 children. Addressing the rest of the people gathered round him, he said, "At 

 present I have very little food; but when I catch a whale I'll make liberal 

 presents to you all." 



39. The Boy who Committed Suicide 

 (Told by Jennie Thomsen) 



A boy once went inland until he came to a great river teeming with fish. 

 He took off one of his boots and threw it into the water, saying: 



qoK'uya ha qaK'uya ha qa\-uya qaK'Uya qaK'uya cayavakpa 



"My fish-net, my fish-net, it carries it away." 

 The boot went floating down the stream. He removed his other boot and 

 threw it in with the same words. All his clothing followed in the same way. 

 Finally he threw himself in, and as he sank still murmured qa\-uya ha qaX'uya ha 

 qa\-uya qaK'Uya qoK'uya cayavakpa. 



40. A Strange Country 

 (Told by an Eskimo woman of Cape Prince of Wales) 



Long ago a boy, who had gone out sealing at Point Hope, was carried awaj' 

 by drifting ice and unable to return home. He drifted about for some time and 

 at last reached a strange country of whose inhabitants he had never heard; 

 but as he did not know in which direction to look for his own home, he settled 

 down among the strangers and married one of their women. In due time his 

 wife became pregnant. When her confinement was drawing near her father 

 sharpened an ulo (woman's knife) intending to cut open his daughter's side in 

 the night and take the baby out. The husband remonstrated, saying that it 

 would cause her great pain, but the father replied, "That is how we always 

 deliver our women. We cut open the mother's womb while she sleeps, take 

 the baby out and sew the wound up again. When the mother wakes the oper- 

 ation is over and she is all right." But the young man said, "In my country 

 we let the child come forth of itself," and he persuaded the parents to allow his 

 wife to be delivered naturally, for he could not bear to have her undergo so 

 painful and dangerous an operation. The baby was born at the proper time and 

 all the people rejoiced. Thereafter no more women had to undergo the oper- 

 ation, and many who had been so delivered lamented having suffered it, for it 

 had left them stooping on one side; some had even died from its effects. 



Cf. Boas, Bulletin, A.M.N.H., Vol. XV, pt. I, p. 171. 



41. The Orphan who was Drowned 

 (Told by Angotitsiaq, an Eskimo of Point Hope) 



Once there were living on the sea shore an old woman and her young grand- 

 son. They had no neighbours, but Hved quite alone. The boy made a wooden 

 kayak one day and, going inside, asked his grandmother for the lampstick 

 (atqun) to make into a paddle. A little while afterwards he went back again 

 and asked for the stick on which melting blubber is held over the lamp 

 (ayayyaun) ; he wanted to make a spear from it, he said. When all was ready 



