76 A Canadian Arctic Expedition, 1913-18 



60. The Wolf-people 



(Told by Ilatsiaq) 



A woman was travelling alone over the land, carrying a baby on her back. 

 One day she came to a house. She went inside, and found only a woman with 

 a wolf -skin stretched out alongside of her; all the men, she was told, had gone 

 out hunting. After a time the hunters drew near, and this woman took her 

 wolf-skin and went out to meet them. Her visitor, looking out, saw her change 

 into a wolf, and wag her tail from side to side as she advanced to meet the 

 hunters, who were also wolves. Presently they all changed to human beings 

 again and entered the hut. They began to talk about their hunt, and the men 

 said that they had not been successful, so they were going to hold a shamanistic 

 performance to discover the reason. Now it happened that while the hunters 

 were out the woman had fed her baby with some caribou leg-sinew to which the 

 meat was still attached. This, the wolf-men said, was taboo and had prevented 

 them from securing any game that day. However, the next day, they went out 

 hunting again, and this time they were successful. They kept the woman with 

 them to dry the meat that they brought home. 



61. The Fox- woman 

 (Told by Ilatsiaq) 



An Eskimo was once married to a fox, which had the form of a very beauti- 

 ful woman. Beside him there dwelt another man and his wife, and the two 

 families were united by the bond of "wife-exchange." Once when they had 

 agreed to exchange wives for the night the second man went over to the fox- 

 woman's hut. No sooner had he entered, however, than he remarked, "How 

 vilely this fox smells." The woman was intensely annoyed, and immediately 

 ran outside and fled to her own people. Next day her husband followed her 

 tracks and reached the foxes' settlement, where there were snow-huts just like 

 the huts that men build. The fox-woman was afraid when she saw her husband 

 coming, and tried to hide behind her people, but her husband discovered her 

 and took her back to his home. Thereafter, however, the people were very 

 careful not to offend her again by remarking on the bad smell she exuded. 



Cf. Eink, stories 11 and 83; Rasmussen, pp. 167, 330f; Kasznusaen and Worster, p. 79; Boas, Bulletin, A.M.N.H., 

 Vol. XV, pt. I, p. 224f.; Hawkes, p. 156; Jochelaon, p. 364 (3). 



62. The Bear-husband 

 (Told by Taptuna, a Dolpriin and Union strait Eskimo) 



A woman was once married to a polar bear. Some hunters shot at it one 

 day and killed it. Then for several days his wife never saw him, but at last 

 he reappeared in the form of a man. The woman was a shaman; by her magical 

 power she was able to heal him so that he could hunt as before. 



Cf. Meddelelser om Gr*nland, XXXIX, p. 290f.; Boas, Central Eskimo, p. 638f. 



63. The Woman and the Polab Bears 

 (Told by Ilatsiaq) 



A woman who was living alone with her husband went out one day and on 

 returning told her husband that she had seen a settlement of polar bears. He 

 told her she lied, and in spite of her protests refused to beheve her story. So 

 next morning she said to him, "You said I lied. Now come with me and see 

 for yourself." They hitched the dogs to the sled and started out. After a 

 time they drew near to the polar bear camp and the bears came out to meet 

 them, "The man was very much afraid; he pushed the woman off the sled. 



