SCIENCE. 
21 / 
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 alga 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 
Pedicularis 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 ancooi , 
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 a?icoofs 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 Groenlands nye Perlustration, Eller Naturel- 
Historie, Hans Egede, 1741.) 
We would here add that those who become ancoot s 
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 Torngarsuk .* 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 Torngarsuk , 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 ancoots 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 sue- 
* Torngarsuk 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 Torncet ; these can be seen 
cnly by the angekokt, y after their meeting; with Torngarsttk. It appears 
that this word signifies the greatest spirit of Good, as well as of Evil. 
They now call the Devil Torngarsuk , and in their ancient bcli f their 
God, so to 6peak, the same. 
