SONNTAG.--TWILIGHT INCREASING.--A DEER-HUNT.--THE ARCTIC
FOXES.--THE POLAR BEAR.--ADVENTURES WITH BEARS.--OUR NEW
ESQUIMAUX.--ESQUIMAU DRESS.--A SNOW HOUSE.--ESQUIMAU
IMPLEMENTS.--A WALRUS HUNT.
I will not trouble the reader with the many gloomy reflections which
I find scattered over the pages of my journal during the period
succeeding the events which are recorded in the last chapter. While
the loss of my dogs left me in much doubt and uncertainty as to my
future prospects, the death of Mr. Sonntag deprived me of assistance
which was very essential to the accomplishment of some of my purposes.
His familiar acquaintance with the physical sciences, and his earnest
enthusiasm in every thing which pertained to physical research,
both in the field and study, made him an invaluable aid, while his
genial disposition and manly qualities gave him a deep hold upon my
affections. Similarity of taste and disposition, equal age, a common
object, and a mutual dependence for companionship, had cemented more
and more closely a bond of friendship which had its origin in the
dangers and fortunes of former travel.
[Sidenote: A DEER-HUNT.]
The light was now growing upon us from day to day, and we found a
fresh excitement in the renewal of the hunt. It must not, however,
be supposed that, even at noon, we had yet any daylight; but there
was a twilight, which was increasing with each successive day. The
reindeer had grown very poor during the winter, and their flesh was
tough and almost tasteless; but this did not discourage the hunters,
and several captures were made. One day a large herd came down near the
store-house, which, being reported, caused a general scramble for guns,
and a rush over the hills to surround the game. The crew appeared more
like boys on a holiday frolic than men catering for their mess. They
made noise enough, as one would have thought, to frighten every living
thing from the neighborhood; but, nevertheless, three deer were shot.
The thermometer stood at 41° below zero, and, there being a light wind,
the air was somewhat biting, and gave rise to numerous incidents quite
characteristic of our life. The handling of the cold gun was attended
with some risk to the fingers, as one can neither pull the trigger nor
load with a mittened hand; and there were quite a number of slight
"burns," as wounds from this cause were jestingly called. McDonald
carried an old flint-lock musket, the only weapon that he could lay
his hands on, and in the midst of the excitement he was heard to fire.
Hurrying in that direction, Knorr eagerly inquired what he was shooting
at, and where the game had gone. His answer afterward furnished us not
a little amusement: "There was a monstrous big deer deer there half an
hour ago, and had I pulled trigger when I left the ship I should have
killed him. But you see the powder is so cold that it won't burn, and
it takes half an hour to touch it off;" and, to prove his theory, he
poured a lot of it out on the dry snow, and applied a match. His singed
whiskers bore ample evidence that his theory was not founded on fact.
[Sidenote: THE ARCTIC FOXES.]
The hill-side seemed to be alive with foxes; and, scenting the blood
of the dead deer, they flocked in from all directions. These little
animals were at first quite tame, but they had been cured of their
familiarity by the lessons learned from the hunters, and had to be
approached with adroitness. Of both the blue and white varieties I had
living specimens in my cabin. One of them was the gentle creature,
named Birdie, which I have already mentioned. The other one was purely
white, and did not differ from Birdie in shape, although it was
somewhat larger. The fur of the latter was much more coarse than the
former. Their cry was exactly the same. But, while Birdie was very
docile, and had grown quite domesticated, the other was thoroughly wild
and untamable. Their respective weights were 4¼ and 7 pounds. The
latter was full grown and unusually large.
These two varieties of the fox, notwithstanding their many points of
resemblance, are evidently distinct species. I have not known them
to mix, the coat of each preserving its distinctive hue, that of the
blue fox varying merely in degree of shade, while the white changes
only from pure white to a slightly yellowish tinge. The term "blue,"
as applied to the species to which Birdie belonged, is not wholly a
misnomer, for, as seen upon the snow, its color gives something of that
effect. The color is in truth a solid gray, the white and black being
harmoniously blended, and not mixed as in the gray fox of Northern
America. Their skins are much sought after by the trappers of Southern
Greenland, where the animals are rare, for the fur commands a fabulous
price in the Copenhagen market.
These foxes obtain a very precarious subsistence, and they may be seen
at almost any time scampering over the ice, seeking the tracks of the
bears, which they follow with the instinct of the jackal following the
lion; not that they try their strength against these roving monarchs
of the ice-fields, but, whenever the bear catches a seal, the little
fox comes in for a share of the prey. Their food consists besides of an
occasional ptarmigan, (the Arctic grouse,) and if quick in his spring
he may be lucky enough to capture a hare. In the summer they congregate
about the haunts of the birds, and luxuriate upon eggs. It is a popular
belief in Greenland that they gather enormous stores of them for their
winter provender, but I have never witnessed in them any such evidence
of foresight.
[Sidenote: THE POLAR BEAR.]
[Sidenote: ADVENTURES WITH BEARS.]
The bears, wandering continually through the night, must needs have a
hard struggle to live. During the summer, the seal, which furnish their
only subsistence, crawl up on the ice, and are there easily caught;
but in the winter they only resort to the cracks to breathe, and, in
doing so, barely put their noses above the water, so that they are
captured with difficulty. Driven to desperation by hunger, the bear
will sometimes invade the haunts of men, in search of the food which
their quick sense has detected. Our dogs, during the early winter, kept
them from our vicinity; but, when the dogs were gone, several bears
made their appearance. One of them came overland from the Fiord, and
approached the store-house from behind the observatory, where Starr
was engaged in reading the scale of the magnetometer. The heavy tread
of the wild beast was heard through the stillness of the night, and,
without much regard to the delicate organization of the instrument
which he was observing, the young gentleman rushed for the door, upset
the magnetometer, and had nearly lost his life in his precipitate haste
to get over the dangerous ice-foot, while hurrying on board to give
the alarm. We sallied out with our rifles; but while Starr was fleeing
in one direction, the bear had been making off in the other. I had an
adventure, about this time, which, like that of Starr's, shows that
the Polar bear is not so ferocious as is generally supposed; indeed,
they have never been known to attack man except when hotly pursued and
driven to close quarters. Strolling one day along the shore, I was
observing with much interest the effect of the recent spring tides upon
the ice-foot, when, rounding a point of land, I suddenly found myself
confronted in the faint moonlight by an enormous bear. He had just
sprung down from the land-ice, and was meeting me at a full trot. We
caught sight of each other at the same instant. Being without a rifle
or other means of defence, I wheeled suddenly toward the ship, with, I
fancy, much the same reflections about discretion and valor as those
which crossed the mind of old Jack Falstaff when the Douglas set upon
him; but finding, after a few lengthy strides, that I was not gobbled
up, I looked back over my shoulder, when, as much to my surprise as
gratification, I saw the bear tearing away toward the open water with
a celerity which left no doubt as to the state of his mind. I suppose
it would be difficult to determine which was the worst frightened--the
bear or I.
[Sidenote: OUR NEW ESQUIMAUX.]
The additions to the Hans family furnished us as well a welcome source
of amusement as of service. As I have said before, they were three in
number, and bore respectively the names of Tcheitchenguak, Kablunet,
and Angeit. This latter was the brother of Hans's wife, and his name
signifies "The Catcher"--given to him, no doubt, in early infancy,
from some peculiarity of disposition which he then manifested. And he
was not inaptly named. The sailors took him into their favor, scrubbed
and combed him, and dressed him in Christian clothing, and under their
encouraging countenance he was soon found to be as full of tricks as
a monkey, and as acquisitive as a magpie. He was the special torment
of the steward and the cook. Driven almost to despair, and utterly
defeated in every project of reform, the former finally set at the
little heathen with a bundle of tracts and a catechism, while the
latter declared his fixed resolve to scald him on the first favorable
opportunity. "Very well, cook; but remember they hang for murder." "Den
I kills him a leetle," was the ready answer.
His mother, Kablunet, proved to be a useful addition to our household.
She was very industrious with her needle; and, until she became
possessed, in payment for her work, of such articles of domestic use
as she needed, sewed for us continually, making every sort of skin
garment, from boots to coats, which belong to an Arctic wardrobe. Her
complexion was quite light, as her name implied. Kablunet is the title
which the Esquimaux give to our race, and it signifies "The child with
the white skin;" and if the name of her husband, Tcheitchenguak, did
not mean "The child with the dark skin," it ought to, for he was almost
black.
The personal appearance of this interesting couple was not peculiarly
attractive. Their faces were broad, jaws heavy, cheek-bones projecting
like other carnivorous animals, foreheads narrow, eyes small and
very black, noses flat, lips long and thin, and when opened there
were disclosed two narrow, white, well-preserved rows of polished
ivory,--well worn, however, with long use and hard service, for the
teeth of the Esquimaux serve a great variety of purposes, such as
softening skins, pulling and tightening cords, besides masticating
food, which I may here mention is wholly animal. Their hair was jet
black, though not abundant, and the man had the largest growth of beard
which I have seen upon an Esquimau face, but it was confined to the
upper lip and the tip of the chin. The face of the Esquimau is indeed
quite Mongolian in its type, and is usually beardless. In stature they
are short, though well built, and bear, in every movement, evidence of
strength and endurance.
[Sidenote: ESQUIMAU DRESS.]
The dress of the male and female differed but little one from the
other. It consisted of nine pieces,--a pair of boots, stockings,
mittens, pantaloons, an under-dress, and a coat. The man wore boots
of bear-skin, reaching to the top of the calf, where they met the
pantaloons, which were composed of the same materials. The boots
of the woman reached nearly to the middle of the thigh, and were
made of tanned seal-skins. Her pantaloons, like her husband's, were
of bear-skin. The stockings were of dog-skin, and the mittens of
seal-skin. The under-dress was made of bird-skins, feathers turned
inwards; and the coat, which did not open in front, but was drawn on
over the head like a shirt, was of blue fox-skins. This coat terminates
in a hood which envelops the head as completely as an Albanian _capote_
or a monk's cowl. This hood gives the chief distinction to the dresses
of the sexes. In the costume of the man it is round, closely fitting
the scalp, while in the woman it is pointed at the top to receive
the hair which is gathered up on the crown of the head, and tied
into a hard, horn-like tuft with a piece of raw seal-hide,--a style
of _coiffure_ which, whatever may be its other advantages, cannot be
regarded as peculiarly picturesque.
Their ages could not be determined; for, since the Esquimaux cannot
enumerate beyond their ten fingers, it is quite impossible for them to
refer to a past event by any process of notation. Having no written
language whatever, not even the picture-writing and hieroglyphics
of the rudest Indian tribes of North America, the race possesses no
records, and such traditions as may come down from generation to
generation are not fixed by any means which will furnish even an
approximate estimate of their periods of growth, prosperity, and decay,
or even of their own ages.
[Sidenote: A SNOW HUT.]
[Sidenote: TCHEITCHENGUAK "AT HOME."]
These old people, soon growing tired of the warmth of Hans's tent,
went ashore and built a snow-hut, and set up housekeeping on their own
account; and living upon supplies which they got regularly from my
abundant stores, and, with no need for exertion, it was perhaps not
surprising that they should prove to be a very happy and contented
couple. This snow-hut, although an architectural curiosity, would
have excited the contempt of a beaver. It was nothing more than an
artificial cave in a snow-bank, and was made thus: Right abreast of
the ship there was a narrow gorge, in which the wintry winds had piled
the snow to a great depth, leaving, as it whirled through the opening,
a sort of cavern,--the curving snow-bank on the right and overhead,
and the square-sided rock on the left. Starting at the inner side of
this cavern, Tcheitchenguak began to bury himself in the snow, very
much as a prairie-dog would do in the loose soil,--digging down into
the drift, and tossing the lumps behind him with great rapidity. After
going downward for about five feet, he ran off horizontally for about
ten feet more. This operation completed, he now began to excavate his
den. His shovel was struck into the hard snow above his head, the
blocks which tumbled down were cleared away, and thrown out into the
open air, and in a little while he could stand upright and work; and
when at length satisfied with the size of the cave, he smoothed it
off all around and overhead, and came out covered with whiteness. The
door-way was now fixed up and made just large enough to crawl through
on all fours; the entering tunnel was smoothed off like the inside; the
floor of the cave was covered first with a layer of stones, and then
with several layers of reindeer-skins; the walls were hung with the
same materials; two native lamps were lighted; across the door-way was
suspended another deer-skin, and Tcheitchenguak and his family were
"at home." I called upon them some hours afterwards, and found them
apparently warm and comfortable. The lamps (their only fire) blazed up
cheerfully, and the light glistened on the white dome of this novel
den; the temperature had risen to the freezing point, and Kablunet,
like a good housewife, was stitching away at some article of clothing;
Tcheitchenguak was repairing a harpoon for his son-in-law, and Angeit,
the bright-eyed pest of the galley and the pantry, was busily engaged
stowing away in a stomach largely disproportionate to the balance of
his body, some bits of venison which looked very much as as if they had
recently been surreptitiously obtained from a forbidden corner of the
steward's store-room.
[Sidenote: ESQUIMAU PRESENTS.]
In consideration for the kindness which I had shown these people, they
gave me a set of their hunting and domestic implements, the principal
of them being a lance, harpoon, coil of line, a rabbit-trap, a lamp,
pot, flint and steel, with some lamp-wick and tinder. The lance was a
wooden shaft, probably from Dr. Kane's lost ship, the _Advance_, with
an iron spike lashed firmly to one end of it, and a piece of walrus
tusk, shod with sharp iron, at the other. The harpoon staff was a
narwal tooth or horn, six feet long,--a very hard and solid piece of
ivory, and perfectly straight. The harpoon head was a piece of walrus
tusk, three inches long, with a hole through the centre for the line,
a hole into one end for the sharpened point of the staff, and at the
other end it was, like the lance-head, tipped with iron. The line was
simply a strip of raw seal-hide about fifty feet long, and was made
by a continuous cut around the body of the seal. The rabbit-trap was
merely a seal-skin line with a multitude of loops dangling from it.
The lamp was a shallow dish of soft soap-stone, in shape not unlike a
clam-shell, and was eight inches by six. The pot was a square-sided
vessel of the same material. The flint was a piece of hard granite, the
steel a lump of crude iron pyrites, the wick was dried moss, and the
tinder the delicate down-like covering of the willow catkins.
Tcheitchenguak told me that he was preparing the lances for a walrus
hunt, and that he and Hans intended to try their skill on the morrow.
The walrus had been very numerous in the open waters outside the harbor
all through the winter, and their shrill cry could be heard at almost
any time from the margin of the ice. The flesh of these animals is the
staple food of the Esquimaux; and although they prize the flesh of the
reindeer, yet it is much as we do "canvas-backs;" and, for a long and
steady pull, there is nothing like the "Awak," as they call the walrus,
in imitation of its cry. To them its flesh is what rice is to the
Hindoo, beef to the Gouchos of Buenos Ayres, or mutton to the Tartars
of Mongolia.
[Sidenote: A WALRUS HUNT.]
[Sidenote: A SEASON OF PLENTY.]
The proposed hunt came off successfully. Hans and the old man set out
with all of their tackle in fine order, and found a numerous herd of
walrus swimming near the edge of the ice. They were approached with
caution, on all fours, and were not alarmed. The hunters reached within
a few feet of the water. They both then lay down flat on the ice and
imitated the cry of the animals of which they were in pursuit; and the
whole herd was soon brought by this means within easy reach of the
harpoon. Rising suddenly, Hans buried his weapon in a good-sized beast,
while his companion held fast to the line and secured his end of it
with the iron spike of a lance-staff, which he drove into the ice and
held down firmly. The beast struggled hard to free itself, floundering
and plunging like a wild bull held by a lasso, but all without avail.
With every opportunity Hans took in the slack of the line and secured
it, and at length the struggling prey was within twenty feet of the
hunters. The lance and rifle now did their work very expeditiously; the
frightened comrades of the dying animal rushed away through the waters
with loud cries of alarm, their deep bass voices sounding strangely
through the darkness. The edge of the ice proved to be too thin to bear
the captured game, and, having secured it with a line, it was allowed
to remain until the following day, when, the ice having thickened with
the low temperature, the flesh was chopped out and brought in. The
snow-hut now rejoiced in a supply of food and blubber sufficient to
last its inmates for a long time to come; the dogs were refreshed with
a substantial meal; and the head and skin were put into a barrel and
labeled "Smithsonian."
[Illustration]