BEDS AND BEDCLOTHES AT OLA. 
389 
Their flooring was the natural soil levelled ofl‘; and down 
the entire length of their centres ran a raised bed of earth 
of some four or flve feet in width, that was kept from 
crumbling down by a framework of posts and rough 
planks. 
Around this earthen work ran a gangway of about the 
same width, while around the sides of the building 
itself were tier upon tier of sleeping-bunks, — very much 
like a ship's forecastle, — the bottoms of which were tilled 
with skins of black bear, reindeer, and other animals; 
these evidently answered the purpose of both bed and 
bedclothes, and presented any thing but an inviting ap- 
pearance. In the centre of the earthen work there was 
kept up a constant fire, the smoke of which, curling up 
among the rafters, served to cure quantities of hanging 
salmon before etfecting its escape through the extensive 
skylight.” From the smoke of the constant fires that 
W''ere thus kept up, their interiors had assumed a smoky 
hue, which, assisted by the smell of fish, gave every thing 
a look of greasy filthiness. We soon concluded that the 
open air was best adapted to the business of traflicking, 
and “backed out” accordingly. 
The second style of house was, as I have already re- 
marked, similar to these as far as material was concerned, 
but no further. They were, like the Malay houses of 
Rangou, raised upon from four to eight posts to an eleva- 
tion of several feet, but, unlike them, wore floored with 
small saplings or rough plank. They were some ten feet 
square as a general rule, boasted a single door and no 
windows, and w'cre without chimneys. Their floor was 
about three feet from the ground, so that they could be 
