SCIENCE. 



217 



applied as soon after the animal's death as possible, 

 and while they are yet warm. 



In cases of scurvy they never use Cochliaria, but 

 the stomach of a freshly killed reindeer, with the vege- 

 table contents, instead. If the scurvy patient be very 

 bad, the limbs are bound with pieces of the deer's 

 stomach, whale or seal's blubber, or any kind of fresh 

 meat. If a whale can be caught at such a time, the 

 patient is sometimes bodily shoved into the carcass, 

 or the lower extremities only are sunken into the 

 flesh. 



The most prevalent disease among them seems to 

 be lung disease ; it is alarmingly common, and con- 

 sumption probably kills more than all other diseases 

 combined. 



The whalemen have introduced venereal diseases 

 among them, which have spread at a terrible rate, 

 and devastate the natives almost like a pest. 



I could not learn that they have any knowledge of 

 the medical properties of any plant or shrub. Some 

 of the coarser kinds of algce are procured at low tide 

 from the cracks in the ice, and eaten raw, but only 

 because they are fit to eat, they say ; the roots of 

 Pediadaris are also sometimes eaten. 



When the women are about to be confined they 

 are placed in a small snow- hut, if it be winter, and in 

 a little skin tent, if summer, by themselves. Their 

 only attendant is a little girl, who is appointed by the 

 head ancoot of the encampment. A little raw meat — 

 deer, if they have it — is put into the hut with her, and 

 she is left to give birth to the child as best she can. 

 The reason she is removed from her tent is, that 

 should mother or child die in the tent nothing per- 

 taining to the equipment of the establishment could 

 ever be used again, not even the tent-covering or the 

 husband's hunting-gear. In some instances they are 

 obliged to modify this custom somewhat. We have 

 known them to cut the tent-cover about two feet from 

 ground all around and use the upper portion. A man's 

 wife accidentally shot herself in her igloo, but the gun 

 was too great a sacrifice; he used it, but the rest of 

 his household effects were left to waste away where 

 they lay. We knew of another instance where the 

 tent-poles were brought into use again in the course 

 of a year after a death had occurred beneath 

 them. 



As soon as the mother with her new-born babe is 

 able to get up and go out, usually but a few hours, 

 they are taken in charge by an aged female ancoot, 

 who seems to have some particular mission to per- 

 form in such cases. She conducts them to some level 

 spot on the ice, if near the sea, and begins a sort of 

 march in circles on the ice, the mother following with 

 her child on her back ; this manoeuvre is kept up some 

 time, the old woman going through a number of per- 

 formances the nature of which we could not learn, 

 and continually muttering something equally unintel- 

 ligible to us. 



The next act is to wade through snow-drifts, the 

 aged ancoot leading the way. We have been informed 

 that it is customary for the mother to wade thus bare- 

 legged, but (whether from modesty or the temperature 

 of — 50 F. we cannot say) on some occasions this 

 part of the performance is dispensed with. 



When a sick person gets so far gone that they deem 

 recovery improbable, he is removed from the hut, and 



either dragged out upon the rocks to die, or a little 

 snow shelter may be constructed for him, and some 

 scraps of raw meat thrown in to him. Usually such 

 proceedings are apt to end fatally to the patient, even 

 though his ailment might not have been so dangerous 

 had proper care been taken. We know of one in- 

 stance where a man was thus put out to die seven 

 different times ; but he recovered and crawled back 

 to his igloo, and looks now as if he was good for a 

 number of years yet. Stories are common of how 

 aged and infirm people are put out of the way by the 

 younger ones, to rid themselves of a useless burden ; 

 but of this we know nothing from personal observa- 

 tions, or from reliable sources. 



Occasional instances of suicide happen, generally 

 when the person is afflicted with some incurable dis- 

 ease. Hanging seems to be the favorite mode of 

 killing themselves. 



The am oof s manner of operating is various, and 

 almost every one has some method peculiar to him- 

 self. We could get but a glimpse of some of them, 

 as they are averse to having a white man witness 

 their performances, and we had the greatest difficulty 

 in getting any one to explain to us their meaning. The 

 following legend is supposed to give the directions for 

 becoming an ancoot ; it is interesting that this legend 

 does not differ essentially from the Greenlander's. 

 ( Vide Grcenlands nye Perlustration, Eller Naturel- 

 Historie, Hans Egede, 1741.) 



We would here add that those who become amoots 

 are only such as are naturally possessed of a more 

 penetrating mind than their fellows, generally the big- 

 gest rascals in the encampment, who seldom pay any 

 attention to what is right or just, but ply their voca- 

 tion so as to win for themselves renown among their 

 fellows, and possess themselves of any coveted article 

 as remuneration for their services. 



Any one wishing to become an ancoot must go 

 away a long distance from where there is any other 

 person. Then he must find a large stone, and seat 

 himself by it, and call on Tomgarsuk* This spirit 

 will then make himself present to him. The would- 

 be ancoot will at first be very much frightened at the 

 arrival and appearance of this spirit, so much so that 

 he is seized with severe pains, and falls down and 

 dies, and remains dead for three days. Then he 

 comes to life again, and returns home a very wise 

 man. 



An ancoot' s duty is, first, to mutter over the sick, 

 that they may become well again ; secondly, he will 

 talk with Tomgarsuk, and get information from him 

 as to how he must manage so that they will have suc- 

 cess in their undertakings ; thirdly, of him he learns 

 if any one is about to die, and what the cause is, or if 

 some unusual death or misfortune is about to occur 

 to the people. 



Their devotion and belief in the amoots are unlim- 

 ited ; they can never be induced to trespass on the 

 commands or disbelieve the prophecies of these im- 

 portant personages. When one has been a very suc- 



* Tomgarsuk of the natives of South Greenland, and Tornarsuk of 

 North Greenland, is the highest oracle, the master spirit of these people. 

 There are many spirits of less power, called Tornat ; these can be seen 

 enly by the angekoks. after their meeting with Tomgarsuk. it appears 

 that this word signifies the greatest spirit of Good, as well as of Evil. 

 They now call the Devil Tomgarsuk, and in their ancient bcli f their 

 God, so to speak, the same. 



