182 



THE POLAR WORLD. 



ceased friends have still the same wants, and pursue the same occupations, as 

 when in the land of the living ; and thus they place in or about their graves a 

 sledge, a spear, a cooking-pot, a knife, an axe, etc., to assist them in procuring 

 and preparing their food. At the funeral, and for several years afterwards, the 

 relations sacrifice reindeer over the grave. When a person of note, a prince, a 

 Starschina, the proprietor of numerous herds of reindeer, dies (for even among 

 the miserable Samoiedes we find the social distinctions of rich and poor), the 

 nearest relations make an image, which is placed in the tent of the deceased, 

 and enjoys the respect paid to him during his lifetime. At every meal the im- 

 age is placed in his former seat, and every evening it is undressed and laid 

 down in his bed. During three years the image is thus honored, and then 

 buried ; for by this time the body is supposed to be decayed, and to have lost 

 all sensation of the past. The souls of the Tadibes, and of those who have died 

 a violent death, alone enjoy the privilege of immortality, and after their terres- 

 trial life hover about in the air as unsubstantial spirits. 



Yet in spite of this privilege, and of the savory morsels that fall to their 

 share at every sacrificial feast, or of the j^resents received for their services, the 

 Tadibes are very unhappy beings. The ecstatic condition into which they so 

 frequently work themselves shatters their nerves and darkens their mind. Wild 

 looks, bloodshot eyes, an uncertain gait, and a shy manner, are among the ef- 

 fects of this periodical excitement. 



Like the Ostiaks, the Samoiedes consider the taking of an oath as an action 

 of the highest religious importance. When a crime has been secretly commit- 

 ted against a Samoiede, he has the right to demand an oath from the suspected 

 person. 



If no wooden or stone Hahe is at hand, he manufactures one of earth or 

 snow, leads his opponent to the image, sacrifices a dog, breaks the image, and 

 then addresses him with the following words : — " If thou hast committed this 

 crime, then must thou perish like this dog." The ill consequences of perjury 

 are so much dreaded by the Samoides — who, though they have but very faint 

 ideas of a future state, firmly believe that crime will be punished in this life, 

 murder with violent death, or robbery by losses of reindeer — that the true 

 criminal, when called upon to swear, hardly ever submits to the ceremony, but 

 rather at once confesses his guilt and pays the penalty. 



The most effectual security for an oath is that it should be solemnized over 

 the snout of a bear — an animal which is highly revered by all the Siberian tribes, 

 from the Kamchatkans to the Samoiedes, as well as by the Laplanders. Like 

 the Laplanders, they believe that the bear conceals under his shaggy coat a hu- 

 man shape with more than human wisdom, and speak of him in terms of the 

 highest reverence. Like the Lapps also, when occasion offers, they will drive 

 an arrow or a bullet through his skin ; but they preface the attack with so 

 many compliments that they feel sure of disarming his anger. 



The appearance of the Samoiedes is as wild as the country which they in- 

 habit. The dwarfish stature of the Ostiak, or the Lapp, thick lips, small eyes, 

 a low forehead, a broad nose so much flattened that the end is nearly upon a 

 level with the bone of the upper jaw (which is stroHg and greatly elevated). 



