FOOD FOR THE DEAD. 



467 



At 7 30 P.M. the aurora was lifting its arches zenithward ; 

 there were now two reaching from east to west, and for some por- 

 tion of the way there were three. The wind was blowing almost 

 a gale, the thermometer being 6° above zero. The stronger the 

 breeze, the more beautiful was the aurora, the brisker its races 

 and dancings, and the more glowing its colors. I find in my 

 diary the following entry with reference to this sublime spec- 

 tacle : 



"I wish all my friends in the States could witness the aurora 

 as seen in these regions. I am sure, on beholding it as now seen, 

 they would clap their hands and sing, ' Praise to God, for He 

 hath surrounded us with the heavens full of glory !' 



" Never shall I forget when, last winter, Captain B , Mate 



Gardiner, and myself were on deck, witnessing one of the rare 



displays just described. In truth, we did tremble, Captain B 



exclaiming, L I never wish to behold the like again. 1 And so I felt." 



I accompany this description and illustration with a picture of 

 a still more remarkable display which occurred on the evening 

 of October 13th, 1860, one feature connected with which was a 

 meteor of great brilliancy ; it shot from a point in the heavens 

 near Cassiopeia, crossing Ursa Minor, and losing itself among the 

 folds of Draco. It was followed by a trail of light twenty degrees 

 in length. 



On November 4th I visited Ebierbing and Tookoolito. Dur- 

 ing my stay the latter informed me that she had to make calls 

 the next day in all the tupics, and perhaps at the ship. On my 

 asking the reason, she answered that her infant would b^ two 

 months old, and that it was the custom — the first Innuits having 

 done so — for the mother to call at every tupic of the village at 

 the end of the period mentioned. During these two months Too- 

 koolito had not been into any tupic except her own. She added 

 that, in accordance with custom, she should cast away all the 

 clothing she then had on, and should never touch it again. 



Some time after I was informed that the grave of Nukertou 

 had been visited by Innuits, according to another of their singu- 

 lar customs. They took down small pieces of tuktoo skin with 

 the fur on, and of toodnoo. When there, they stood around her 

 grave, upon which they placed the articles they had brought. 

 Then one of them stepped up, took a piece of the tuktoo, cut a 

 slice and ate it, at the same time cutting off another slice and plac- 

 ing it under a stone by the grave. Then the knife was passed 



