HABITS AND CUSTOMS OF THE KORAKS
The hour-glass houses--Their curious construction--The
natives prove to be both hospitable and filthy--Dialects of
Dog Koraks and Deer Koraks--Some unpleasant habits--How they
reckon time--Making liquor out of mushrooms--Curious
marriage customs--Clothes of the natives--Queer notions of a
deity--Jealousy of the wandering Koraks--Thieving a virtue
and childbirth a social function.
When the storm was over, we harnessed the dogs and continued our
journey. Seven days of ideal sledging brought us to Kaminaw, a Korak
village at the extreme northern point of the northeastern arm of the
Okhotsk Sea, where I was to discharge my Russian dog-teams, and secure
others from the natives. My first view of the village was from the
summit of a hill half a mile away. I saw what resembled fifty huge
hour-glasses set on the plain, which, on a nearer approach, turned out
to be ten or twelve feet high. As we drew near, the village came
swarming out with a pack of mongrel curs at their heels; and over the
edge of each hour-glass house appeared the heads of the women and
children, all eager to get a glimpse of such a novel sight as a
foreign face. Over each house was suspended a frozen dog. These were
impaled under the chin on the sharp end of a pole, and lifted high in
the air. I learned later that this was a form of sacrifice to the Fish
God, and was intended to insure a good run of fish the next season.
As I tumbled out of my sledge, I was surrounded by the filthiest lot
of natives I had yet seen. Their furs were old and mangy, and the hair
was worn off in spots. The people were kind and pleasant, and seemed
bent on shaking hands with me. I was pressed on all sides with
invitations to enter one and another of the curious houses. As I stood
there, debating what I should do, the chief of the village elbowed his
way through the crowd, took me by the hand, and led me to the largest
of the huts. In order to enter we had to go up a ladder to the height
of ten feet or more. This ladder was a log of driftwood, split down
the center, and provided with little holes in which to put the toes in
ascending. These natives have very small feet, and I found the holes
in the ladder too small to insert my toes, but I managed to scramble
to the top. I was now standing on the edge of an inverted octagonal
cone, made of logs lashed together, the inside or crater of the
affair, which was eighteen feet across, sloping down at an angle of
about fifteen degrees to the center. At that point there was a hole
leading down to the interior of the house. The hole also sufficed for
a chimney, and to enter the house one had to go down a ladder through
the smoke. Santa Claus is said to come from the north, and it is
evidently among this people that he originated, for here everybody
enters his house by way of the chimney.
[Illustration: Upper View of Underground Hut--Home of the Dog Korak.]
This flaring line of logs protects the opening of the house from being
covered up with drifting snow. This is the main reason for building in
this fashion. Moreover, the high scaffolding thus provided is an
excellent storehouse, upon which all sorts of things can be placed
without fear of molestation from wild animals. I saw here a
miscellaneous collection of implements, dog-harness, oars,
fishing-tackle, and firewood. I followed the chief down the ladder
through the smoke. The hole was two feet wide and three feet long. I
found myself in a semi-subterranean apartment, thirty feet in diameter
and fifteen feet high. As we stood on the floor, our heads were about
level with the general surface of the ground. The frame was strongly
built of timbers, evidently driftwood; but everything was black with
age and smoke. I found it so warm that I had to remove my furs. The
room was very dimly illuminated with what little light filtered
through the hole in the roof; and even this was partially obscured by
the smoke that was always passing up and out.
As soon as my eyes became accustomed to the perpetual twilight of the
place, I perceived that around the apartment ran a raised wooden
platform, one foot high and six broad, on which lay piles of
deerskins. The women were busy clearing off a place for me, shaking
out the skins and choosing the best ones for my accommodation. With
native courtesy, which had no stiffness about it, the old gentleman
led me to my place, sat down beside me, and began to talk. I pointed
to my ears to show that I did not understand him.
There seemed to be little difference between the dress of the men and
the women, excepting that the wide "bloomers" of the women were made
of alternate strips of black and white deerskin. Their clothes were
indescribably old and shabby and dirty, and their faces were anything
but clean; but for all that, there were some very comely people among
them. The women wore their hair in two braids, wound about the head,
and fastened at the top in front.
In these rooms one would naturally expect the worst in the matter of
ventilation, and I was surprised to find that it was exceptionally
good. They are enabled to arrange an air-shaft so that it enters the
room, near the floor, on one side. The draft, made by the heat of the
fire rising through the smoke-hole, causes pure air to be drawn
through this ventilating shaft. In fact, there seemed to be no reason
why these dwellings should not be made perfectly comfortable and
sanitary.
The women appeared to be very busy, and even the children were
industriously making thread from the sinews that lie near the backbone
of the deer.
In this house I found an explosive harpoon that the natives had taken
from the body of a whale. It had been fired from the deck of some
whaling-vessel, and had been deeply embedded in the flesh of the
animal. It bore no name.
The Koraks have two dialects, one of which is spoken by the Dog
Koraks, and the other spoken by the Deer Koraks, but the slight
variations are not marked enough to constitute a serious barrier to
communication between them. All these tribes, without doubt, belong to
the great Turanian family, and are allied to the Mongols, Ostiaks,
Samoyeds, and other tribes of northern Asia. The evidence for this is
both physiological and philological.
The writer before quoted says truly of these people that "their manner
of living is slovenly to the last degree; they never wash their hands
or face, nor cut their nails; everything about them smells of fish;
they never comb their heads, but both men and women plait their hair
in two braids; when any hair starts out they sew it in with threads to
make it lie close; and, as a result, they have such a quantity of lice
that they can scrape them off by handfuls." Time seems not to have
weaned them from these disgusting habits.
These people reckon ten months to the year, not by reference to the
changes of the moon, but by the order of special occurrences which
take place each year, with sufficient regularity for the purpose. The
months in their order are: Purifier of Sins, Breaker of Hatchets,
Beginning of Heat, Time of the Long Day, Preparing Month, Red-Fish
Month, White-Fish Month, Kaiko Fish Month, Great White-Fish Month, and
Leaf-Falling Month. Others name them as follows: River-Freezing Month,
Hunting Month, Purifier of Sins, Breaker of Hatchets, Long Day Month,
Sea Beavers' Puppying Month, Sea Calves' Puppying Month, Tame Deer
Foaling Month, Wild Deer Foaling Month, Beginning of Fishing.
A peculiar custom sometimes to be noted among these people is that of
drinking a kind of liquor made from a large species of mushroom. The
effect is, in some respects, similar to that produced by the use of
hashish. At first the imbiber shakes as with the ague; and presently
he begins to rave as if in delirium. Some jump and dance and sing,
while others cry out as if in agony. A small hole looks to them like a
bottomless pit, and a pool of water as broad as the sea. These effects
are produced only when the beverage is used to excess; a small
quantity has much the same effect as a moderate amount of alcoholic
liquor. Curiously enough, after recovering from one of these
debauches, they claim that all the antics performed were by command of
the mushroom. The use of it is not unattended with danger, for unless
a man is well looked after he is likely to destroy himself. The Koraks
sometimes take this drug in order to work themselves up to the point
of murdering an enemy. Three or four of the mushrooms is a moderate
dose, but when one wants to get the full effect one takes ten or
twelve.
[Illustration: Chinese Pump.]
When a native resolves to marry he looks out for a bride, not in his
own village, but in a neighboring one. When he finds a girl who
pleases him, he tells her parents that he is desirous of serving them,
and, during this period of probation, he works most industriously in
order to make a good impression. At last he asks permission to steal
the girl. If his suit is looked upon with disfavor, he is paid for the
service he has rendered and sent away, but if he is acceptable to the
girl and to her parents and relatives, the permission is given. He
then seeks an opportunity of finding the girl alone, which is no easy
matter, for she is supposed to be guarded by the women of the village.
Besides, the girl is covered with two or three coats, and is wrapped
about with fish-nets and straps, so that motion is almost impossible.
If the young man succeeds in finding her alone, or in company with
only one or two women, he seizes her and begins tearing off her
garments, for this constitutes the ceremony of marriage. But this is
not an easy thing to do; for, though the girl herself makes little
resistance, such other women as are about fall upon the would-be groom
without mercy, and beat and scratch him and use every means to prevent
him from accomplishing his purpose. If, however, he is successful in
tearing off her garments, he immediately walks away from her,
whereupon she gently calls him back, and the ceremony is complete. It
seldom happens that the young man succeeds the first time, and
instances are known where a man has tried for several years to secure
his bride, without success.
When successful, the groom carries off his bride to his own village
without any ceremony; but after some time they return to the bride's
home, and a marriage-feast is celebrated, somewhat after the
following manner: the bridal party, including the bridegroom's
friends, approach to within a hundred paces of the village from which
the bride has been taken. They sing and go through certain mystic
rites with a fish's head wrapped in tow and carried by an old woman. A
coat of sheepskin is put on the bride, and several images are hung
about her till she can hardly bear up under the load. A boy of the
village comes out and leads the bride in by the hand. When she comes
to the hut of her parents, a strap is tied around her, and by this she
is let down into the underground house. The fish-head is laid on the
floor at the foot of the ladder, and the bride and all who follow step
on it, after which it is thrown into the fire. The bride is stripped
of all her superfluous ornaments, and the company take their places
about the room. The bridegroom builds a fire and prepares the food,
which had been brought for the purpose, and entertains the people of
the village. The next day, the host entertains the visiting company,
after which every one goes home, except the bride and groom, who
remain to serve her father for a time.
The dress of the men differs but slightly from that of the women. Both
wear the same kind of upper garment, with the skirts either cut off an
equal length all around, or with the back part longer than the front.
The women have an under garment which they usually wear at home. It
consists of a combination of trousers and waistcoat, the trousers
being tied about the leg below the knee, and the waistcoat being tied
with a cord. As might be supposed, the covering for feet and ankles is
a most important matter in this far northern country. In the
summer-time, when the ground is generally one wide marsh, they wear
the skins of seals, with the hair turned out, but often make their
leggings of the skin of reindeer legs. The very finest foot-wear is
made with the sole of white sealskin, and the upper of fine dyed
leather from the hind quarters of a white dogskin. The part that
incases the calf of the leg is made of dressed leather or dyed
sealskin. The tops are always richly embroidered with silk thread. If
a young man is adorned with these shoes, immediately it is concluded
that he is in search of a wife.
Since the complete conquest of these parts by the Russians war has
been practically unknown, but during the process of conquest the
natives made a stubborn resistance. They never fought in the open, but
always by stratagem. A company of Cossacks, arriving at a village,
would be hospitably received, the tribute would be paid, and large
presents made in addition; but when all suspicion had been lulled to
rest the Cossacks were likely to wake in the night to find themselves
in the midst of flames. If any one succeeded in breaking through the
flames, a worse fate awaited him; for then he was slowly tortured to
death by burning, or cut to pieces and disemboweled while yet alive.
If the natives were in strong force, upon hearing of the approach of
the Cossacks they would retire to some high place, which they would
strongly fortify and hold as best they could against the invaders. If
unable to hold their position, they would first cut the throats of the
women and children, and then throw themselves over a precipice, or
rush upon the enemy to be ruthlessly cut down.
These people have indistinct notions about a deity, but they render
him no homage. On the contrary, they treat his name with the utmost
irreverence, and relate stories about him that rival the scandals of
Olympus. They blame him for making so many steep hills, so many rapid
rivers, and for sending so many storms. Sometimes they raise a pillar
in the plain and bind it around with rags, and whenever they pass,
throw at it pieces of fish or other food. But it is noted that they
give nothing that they can use themselves--only the tails of fish or
other refuse. Besides these pillars, there are other places that they
reckon sacred, such as smoking mountains, hot springs, and certain
forests, all of which they imagine to be inhabited by devils, whom
they fear much more than the gods.
A Russian who lived for a long time among these people says of them:
All their beliefs concerning both gods and devils are
certainly very simple and ridiculous; however, it shows that
they endeavor to account for the existence of everything as
far as they are able; and some of them try to penetrate into
the thoughts even of the birds and fishes. But when once a
belief is established they never trouble themselves with
inquiring whether the thing be possible or not. Hence their
religion depends entirely upon ancient tradition, which they
believe without questioning. They have no notion of a
supreme being that influences their happiness or misery, but
hold that every man's good or bad fortune depends upon
himself. The world, they believe, is eternal, the soul
immortal, and that it shall again be joined to the body and
live eternally, subject to the same fatigues and troubles as
in this present life, with this difference only: that they
shall have a greater abundance of all the necessaries of
life. Even the smallest animals, they believe, will rise
again and dwell under the earth. They think the earth is
flat, and that under it there is a firmament like ours; and
under that firmament another earth like ours; in which when
we have summer they have winter, and when we have winter
they have summer. With regard to future rewards and
punishments they believe that in the other world the rich
will be poor and the poor will be rich.
Their notions of vice and virtue are as extraordinary as
those they entertain of God. They believe everything lawful
that procures them the satisfaction of their wishes and
passions, and think that only is sinful from which they
apprehend danger or ruin; so that they reckon neither
murder, suicide, or adultery, oppression, nor the like any
wickedness: on the contrary, they look upon it as a mortal
sin to save any one that is drowning, because, according to
their notions, whoever saves such an one will soon be
drowned himself. They reckon it likewise a sin to bathe in
or to drink hot water, or to go up to the burning mountains.
They worship several animals from which they apprehend
danger. They offer fire at the holes of sables and foxes;
when fishing they entreat the whales or sea-horses not to
overturn their boats; and in hunting they beseech the bears
and wolves not to hurt them.
The wandering Koraks are extremely jealous, and sometimes kill their
wives upon the merest suspicion. Adultery is punished by the death of
both parties. This extreme jealousy on the part of husbands accounts
for the fact that the women take no care of their persons, and are
always dirty and repulsive. They say that their husbands believe that
any attempt at personal adornment would be a sign that they were
wavering in their affections, for their husbands can love them without
any such adornment. With the Koraks who live in the "hour-glass"
houses the case is reversed, for they are extremely careless of the
virtue of their wives and daughters; so much so, that frequently they
lend either the one or the other to their guests or special friends. A
refusal of this civility they consider the greatest affront.
Among all these tribes, except the Kamchadales, theft is considered
reputable so long as one does not steal from people of his own tribe.
When discovered, theft is punished severely, but only because the
thief was not clever enough to escape detection. A Tchuktche girl may
not marry until she has proved her dexterity in this line. Murder is
not looked upon as particularly heinous, unless one kills a
fellow-tribesman. In that case the relatives of the dead avenge the
crime. Consanguineous marriages are extremely common. A man often
takes a cousin, an aunt, or even a mother-in-law as his wife. In fact,
any relative except his mother or daughter may become his wife.
As soon as a child is born they set aside for it a number of reindeer,
but the child cannot claim them till he has reached maturity. In
naming a child, they often go through a certain formality. Having set
up two sticks, they tie a string across the top, and from the middle
hang a stone. Then they repeat the names of the child's relatives,
and, during the course of this recital, should the stone appear to
shake or move, the name spoken at that moment is given to the child.
Without doubt the most curious custom among these people is that
childbirth is a public function, and the whole village may assemble to
witness the event.
The dead are commonly burned. The corpse is dressed in his finest
clothes, and drawn to the place of cremation by his favorite deer. A
great pile of wood is fired, and into the flames are thrown the dead
man's arms and some of his household utensils. After this the deer are
killed, and they, together with the man's body, are thrown upon the
fire. A year later they bring to the place of cremation two young deer
and a large number of deer horns, and, burying the latter, they make a
pretense of sending a herd of deer to the dead man for his use in the
nether world.