The Middle Savage Isles.--Glimpse of an Esquimau
Canoe.--Firing at a Bear with the Cannon-Rifle.--A Strange
Sound.--The Esquimaux.--Their Kayaks.--They come on board.--An
Unintelligible Tongue.--"Chymo."
During the night following our bear-hunt a storm came on,--wind, rain,
and snow, as before,--and continued all the next day. The tremendous
tides, however, effectually prevented any thing like dullness from
"creeping over our spirits;" since we were sure of a sensation at
least twice in twenty-four hours. But during the next night it cleared
up, with the wind north; and, quite early on the morning of the 11th
of July, we dropped out of "Mazard's Bay," and stood away up the
straits.
At one o'clock we sighted another group of mountainous isles,--the
same figured on the chart as the "Middle Savage Isles;" and by five
o'clock we were passing the easternmost a couple of miles to the
southward. Between it and the next island, which lay a little back to
the north, there was a sort of bay filled with floating ice. Raed was
leaning on the bulwarks with his glass, scanning the islands as we
bowled along under a full spread of canvas. Suddenly he turned, and
called to Kit.
"Get your glass," he said. "Or never mind: take mine. Now look right
up there between those islands. What do you see?"
"Seals," replied Kit slowly, with the glass to his eye. "Any quantity
of seals on the ice there; and--there's something larger scooting
along. That's a narwhal: no, 'tain't, either. By jolly! see the seals
flop off into the water as it shoots along! afraid of it. There!
something flashed then in the sun! Raed, I believe that's a
_kayak_,--an Esquimau canoe! An Esquimau catching seals!"
"That's what I thought."
"Wash!"
"Wade!"
"Get your glasses, and come here quick!"
"What's that about Esquimau?" demanded Capt. Mazard, coming along from
the binnacle.
"An Esquimau _kayak_!" said Raed.
"That so?" running after his glass.
In a few moments we were all--all who had glasses--looking off at the
wonderful object, to see which had been one of the pleasant hopes of
our voyage; and yet I am bound to say, that, in and of itself, it was
no great of a sight, especially at a distance of two miles. But,
considered as an invention perfected through centuries by one of the
most singular peoples of the Man family, it is, in connection with all
their implements of use, well worth a study. Indeed, there is, to me
at least, something so inexpressibly quaint and _bizarre_ about this
race, as to render them an object well deserving of a visit. More
strikingly even than the Hottentot or the Digger Indian of the Western
sage deserts do they exhibit the iron sway of climate and food over
habits and character, as well as physical growth and development.
The _kayak_ moved about from point to point for some minutes; then
shot up into the passage between the islets, and was lost from view.
"Suppose he saw us,--saw the schooner?" said Wade.
"Should have thought he might," replied the captain. "Must be a pretty
conspicuous object out here in the sun, with all sail set."
"He may have gone to give news of our arrival," said Raed; "for I
presume there are others--whole families--not far away. These people
always live in small communities or villages, I understand."
"This may be as good a chance to see them as we shall get," said Kit.
"What say for shortening sail, or standing up nearer the islands, and
laying to for the night?"
"Just as you say, gentlemen," replied the captain.
It was agreed to stand up within half a mile, and so cruise along
leisurely; thus giving them a chance to communicate with us if they
desired. The helm was accordingly put round, and "The Curlew" headed
for the second island. Half an hour took us up within a thousand yards
of the ledges: the schooner was then hove to for an hour.
"A few discharges from the howitzer might stir them up," suggested
Wade.
"We _could_ do that!" exclaimed Raed.
Powder was brought up, and the gun charged and fired. A thunderous
echo came back from the rocky sides of the islands. A second and a
third shot were given at intervals of five minutes: but we saw nothing
more of the _kayak_; and, after waiting nearly an hour more, the
schooner was headed around, and continued on her course at about the
same distance from the islands. A gun was fired every hour till
midnight. We then turned in for a nap.
From this time till four o'clock the next morning we passed three
islands: so the sailors reported. The high mainland was distinctly
visible four or five miles to the northward.
At five o'clock we were off a small, low islet,--scarcely more than a
broad ledge, rising at no point more than ten feet above the sea. It
was several miles from the island next above it, however, and girdled
by a glittering ice-field, the remains of last winter's frost, not
yet broken up. Altogether the islet and the ice-field about it was
perhaps two or two miles and a half in diameter. On the west it was
separated from the island below it--a high, black dome of sienite--by
a narrow channel of a hundred and fifty yards. Hundreds of seals lay
basking in the sun along the edges of the ice-field; and, as we were
watching them, we saw a bear swim across the channel and climb on to
the ice-field. Landing, he gave his shaggy sides a shake; then, making
a short run, seized upon a seal, off which he was soon breakfasting.
"We'll spoil his fun!" exclaimed Kit. "Bring up one of those solid
shots, Wade. We've got two bear-skins; but we shall want one apiece. I
propose to have an overcoat next winter out of that fellow's hide."
The howitzer was loaded with the six-pound iron ball. Kit undertook to
do the shooting this time. The distance was, we judged, somewhere from
three-fourths of a mile to a mile. The rest of us got our glasses, and
went back toward the stern to watch the effect of the shot. Of course
it is hap-hazard work, firing at so small an object at so great a
distance, with a cannon, from the deck of a vessel in motion.
Nevertheless Kit made quite a show of elevating the gun and getting
the range. Presently he touched off. The first we saw of the shot was
its striking on the ice-field at a long distance short of the bear.
The bits of ice flew up smartly, and the ball must have ricochetted;
for we saw the ice fly up again quite near the bear, and then at
another point beyond him. It probably went over him at no great
height. The creature paused from his bloody feast, looked round, and
then ran off a few rods, and stood sniffing for some moments, but soon
came back to the seal. Whether it was the report, or the noise of the
ball whirring over, which had startled him, was not very evident.
"Not an overcoat!" laughed Raed.
"It's my turn now," said I, uncovering my _smaller_ cannon. "I'll make
the next bid for that overcoat."
I put in a little less than half a gill of powder this time, and
wrapped a thin patch round the ball to make it fit tightly. It was all
we could do to drive it down. The gun was then capped and cocked. I
moved the screw to elevate it about an inch, and, watching my chance
as the schooner heaved, let drive. But the bear kept on eating. There
was a general laugh.
"Didn't even notice you!" cried Kit. "I can overbid that!"--taking up
the powder to reload the howitzer.
"Not before I bid again," said I.
And at it we went to see who would get loaded first to get the next
shot. But, my gun being so much the smaller and more easily handled, I
had my ball down before Kit had his powder-wad rammed. The rest stood
clapping and cheering us. Hastily priming the tube, I whipped on a
cap, then beckoned to old Trull.
"Here," said I, "shoot that bear for me!"
The old salt chuckled, and had his eye to the piece immediately. I
snatched up my glass. Kit paused to see the result. The old man pulled
the trigger. There was a moment's hush, then a great "Hurrah!" The
bear had jumped up, and, whirling partly round, ran off across the
ice-field roaring, _we fancied_; for he had his mouth open, and
snapping round to his flanks. He had been grazed, if nothing more.
With the glass we could detect blood on his white coat.
"He's hit!" said I. "Let's bear up into the channel: that'll stop him
from getting back to the high islands. We can then hunt him at leisure
on the ice-field. He won't care to swim clean up to the"--
"Hark!" exclaimed Raed suddenly. "What's that noise?"
We all listened.
It was a noise not greatly unlike the faint, distant cawing and hawing
of a vast flock of crows as they sometimes congregate in autumn.
"It's some sort of water-fowl _clanging_ out there about the high
islands," said I.
Again it rose, borne on the wind,--"_Ta-yar-r-r! ta-yar-r-r!
ta-yar-r-r!_" Had we been at home, I should have taken it for a
distant mass-meeting cheering the result of the presidential election,
or perhaps the presidential nomination at the convention. It had a
peculiarly barbarous, reckless sound, which was not wholly unfamiliar.
But up here in Hudson Straits we were at a loss how to account for it.
"I believe it's the Huskies," said the captain. "Take a good look all
around with your glasses."
We ran our eyes over the islands. They looked bare of any thing like
an Esquimau convention. Presently Kit uttered an exclamation.
"Why, just turn your glass off to the main, beyond the islands; right
over the ice-field; on that lofty brown headland that juts out from
the main! There they are!"
There they were, sure enough,--a grimy, bare-headed crowd, swinging
their arms, and gesticulating wildly. It could not have been less than
five miles; but the faint "_Ta-yar-r-r!_" still came to our ears.
"Suppose they are calling to us?" cried Raed.
"Yes; looks like that," replied the captain.
"Heard the guns, you see," said Kit; "those we fired at the bear."
"Port the helm!" ordered the captain. "We'll beat up through this
channel to the north side of the ice-field."
"Perhaps we had best not go up too near them at first," remarked Raed,
"till we find out what sort of _folks_ they are."
"No: two miles will be near enough. They will come off to us,--as many
of them as we shall want on board at one time, I dare say."
The schooner bore up through the channel, and wore along the ice-field
on the north side at a distance of a few hundred yards from it. We saw
the bear running off round to the south-east side to keep away from
us; though, as may readily be supposed, our attention was mainly
directed to the strange people on the headland, whose discordant cries
and shouts could now be plainly heard. We could see them running down
to the shore; and immediately a score of canoes shot out, and came
paddling towards us.
"You don't doubt that their coming off is from friendly motives,
captain?" Kit asked.
"Oh, no!"
"Still forty or fifty stout fellows might give us our hands full, if
they were ill-disposed," remarked Wade.
"That's a fact," admitted the captain; "though I don't believe they
would attempt any thing of the sort."
"Well, there is no harm in being well armed," said Raed. "Kit, you and
Wash get up half a dozen of the muskets, and load them. Fix the
bayonets on them too. Wade and I will load the howitzer and the mighty
rifle. And, captain, I don't believe we had better have more than a
dozen of them on board at one time till we know them better."
"That may be as well," replied Capt. Mazard. "It will be unpleasant
having too many of them aboard at once, anyway. And, in order to have
the deck under our thumb a little more, I am going to station two of
the sailors with muskets, as a guard, near the man at the wheel,
another amidships, and two more forward."
Meanwhile the _kayaks_ were approaching, a whole school of them,
shouting and racing with each other. Such a barbaric din! The crowd on
the shore added their distant shouts.
"There's another thing we must look out for," remarked the captain.
"These folks are said to be a little thievish. It will be well enough
to put loose small articles out of sight."
Hastily perfecting our arrangements, we provided ourselves each with a
musket, and were ready for our strange visitors. They came paddling
up, one to a canoe. Their paddles had blades at each end, and were
used on either side alternately, with a queer windmill sort of
movement.
"Twenty-seven of them," said Kit.
"Bareheaded, every mother's son of them!" exclaimed Weymouth.
"Only look at the long-haired mokes!" laughed Donovan.
"Why, they're black as Palmleaf!" cried Hobbs.
"Oh, no! not nearly so black," said Bonney. "Just a good square
dirt-color."
This last comparison was not far from correct. The Esquimaux are, as a
matter of fact, considerably darker than the red Indians of the United
States. They are not reddish: they are brown, to which grease and
dinginess add not a little. On they came till within fifty yards; when
all drew up on a sudden, and sat regarding us in something like
silence. Perhaps our bayonets, with the sunlight flashing on them, may
have filled them with a momentary suspicion of danger. Seeing this, we
waved our arms to them, beckoning them to approach. While examining
the relics of a past age,--the stone axes, arrow-heads, and maces,--I
have often pictured in fancy the barbarous habits, the wild visages,
and harsh accents, of prehistoric races,--races living away back at
the time when men were just rising above the brute. In the wild
semi-brutish shouts and gesticulations which followed our own gesture
of friendliness I seemed to hear and see these wild fancies
verified,--verified in a manner I had not supposed it possible to be
observed in this age. And yet here were primitive savages apparently,
not fifteen hundred miles in a direct course from our own enlightened
city of Boston, where, as we honestly believe, we have the cream (some
of it, at least) of the world's civilization. Reflect on this fact, ye
who think the whole earth almost ready for the reign of scientific
righteousness!
Such an unblessed discord! such a cry of pristine savagery! They came
darting up alongside, their great fat, flat, greasy faces, with their
little sharp black eyes, looking up to us full of confidence and
twinkling with expectation of good bargains.
During our voyage we had got out of our books quite a number of
Esquimaux words with their English meanings; but these fellows gabbled
so fast, so shockingly indistinct, and ran every thing together so,
that we could not gain the slightest idea of what they were saying,
further than by the word "_chymo_," which, as we had previously
learned, meant _trade_, or _barter_. But they had nothing with them to
trade off to us, save their _kayaks_, paddles, and harpoons.
"But let's get a lot of them up here where we can see them," said
Wade.
We now made signs for them to climb on deck; and immediately half a
dozen of them stood up, and, with a spring, caught hold of the rail,
and came clambering up, leaving their canoes to float about at random.
Five--seven--eleven--thirteen--came scratching over.
"There, that'll do for one dose," said Raed.
Kit and Wade stepped along, and thrust out their muskets to stop the
stream. One little fellow, however, had got half up: so they let him
nig in, making fourteen in all. Three or four more had tried to get up
near the stern; but Weymouth and Don, who were on duty there, rapped
their knuckles gently, as a reminder to let go and drop back into
their _kayaks_, which they did without grumbling. Indeed, they seemed
singularly inoffensive; and, come to get them on deck, they were
"little fellows,"--not so tall as we boys even by a whole head. They
were pretty thick and stout, however, and had remarkably large heads
and faces. I do not think the tallest of them was much, if any, over
five feet. Donovan, who was about six feet, looked like a giant beside
them. They stood huddled together, looking just a little wistful at
being cut off from their fellows, and casting fearful glances at
Guard, who stood barking excitedly at them from the companion-way.
Though used to dogs, they had very likely never seen a jet-black
Newfoundland before. Possibly they mistook him for some different
animal.
"What are we thinking of," exclaimed Raed, "with our guns and
bayonets! Why, these little chaps look the very embodiment of good
nature! Here they trust themselves among us without so much as a stick
in their hands; while we've got out all our deadly weapons! Let's let
the rest of them come up if they want to."
Kit and Wade stood back, and beckoned to the others: whereat they all
came climbing up, save one, who stayed, apparently, to look out for
the empty _kayaks_, which were floating about. They brought rather
strong odors of smoke and greasy manginess; but more good-natured
faces I never saw.
"My eye! but aren't they flabby fat!" exclaimed Hobbs.
"That comes of drinking seal and whale oil," said Bonney.
"Guess they don't sport combs much," said Donovan. "Look at those
tousled heads! Bet you, they're lousy as hens!"
"Talk to 'em, Raed," said Kit. "Say something. Ask 'em if they want to
_chymo_."
At the sound of this last word they turned their little sharp eyes
brightly on Kit.
"_Chymo?_" said Raed interrogatively.
Instantly they began to crowd round him, a dozen jabbering all at
once. Faster even than before they ran on, amid which we could now and
then distinguish words which sounded like _oomiaksook_, _hennelay_,
_cob-loo-nak_, _yemeck_. These words, as we had read, meant _big
ship_, _woman_, _Englishman_, _water_, respectively. But it was
utterly impossible to make out in what connection they were used.
Despite our vocabulary, we were as much at a loss as ever.
"Confound it!" Kit exclaimed. "Let's make signs. No use trying to
_talk_ with them."
"We shall want one of those _kayaks_ to carry home," remarked Raed.
"Captain, will you please bring up a couple of those long bars of iron
and three or four yards of red flannel? We will see what can be done
in the _chymo_ line."
Capt. Mazard soon appeared with the iron and the flannel; at sight of
which the exclamation of "_Chymo!_" and "_Tyma!_" ("Good!") were
redoubled. Raed then took the articles, and, going to the side,
pointed down to one of the canoes, then to the iron bars, and said
_chymo_. At that some of them said "_Tyma_," and others "_Negga-mai_,"
with a shake of their heads; but when Raed pointed to both the iron
and the flannel, undoubling it as he did so, they all cried "_Tyma!_"
and one of them (the owner of the _kayak_, as it proved) came forward
to take the things. Raed gave them to him. A line with a slip-noose
was then dropped over the nose of the _kayak_, and it was pulled on
board.
In plan it was much like our cedar "shells" used at regattas,--a
narrow skiff about twenty-three feet in length by eighteen inches in
width. At the centre there was a small round hole just large enough
for one to sit with his legs under the seal-skin deck, which was bound
tightly to a hoop encircling the hole. Indeed, the whole outside of
this singular craft was of seal-skins, sewed together and drawn tight
as a drum-head over a frame composed mainly of the rib-bones of the
walrus. The double-bladed paddle was tied to the _kayak_ with a long
thong; as was also a harpoon, made of bones laid together, and wound
over with a long thong of green seal-skin. The lance-blade at the
point was of very white, fine ivory; probably that of the walrus.
Attached to the harpoon was a very long coil of line, made also of
braided seal-skin, and wound about a short, upright peg behind the
hoop. We supposed that the paddle and the harpoon went with the
_kayak_. But the owner did not see it in that light. As soon as it had
been hauled on deck, he proceeded to untie the thongs, much to the
amusement of the captain. As we wished these articles to go together,
nothing remained but to drive a new bargain for them. Raed,
therefore, took one of our large jack-knives from his pocket, and,
opening it, pointed to the paddle, and again said _chymo_.
They all _negga-mai-ed_, giving us to understand that it wouldn't be a
fair trade; in other words, that they couldn't afford it: and the
owner of the paddle kept repeating the work _karrack_ deprecatingly.
"What in the world does _karrack_ mean?" Raed asked, turning to us.
Nobody knew.
"_Karrack?_" queried he.
"_Karrack, karrack!_" was the reply.
"_Karrack, karrack, karrack!_" they all cried, pointing to the paddle
and also to the bulwarks.
"They mean _wood!_" exclaimed the captain. "Corliss, bring up two or
three of those four-foot sticks such as we are using for firewood."
It was brought, and thrown down on deck.
"_Karrack, karrack!_" they all exclaimed, and fell to laughing in a
most extraordinary way, making a noise which seemed to come from low
down in their stomachs, and resembled the syllables _heh-heh_, or
_yeh-yeh_, over and over and over. Raed pointed to the three sticks of
wood, and then to the paddle, with another "_chymo_." That was _tyma_;
for they all nodded and _heh-hehed_ again.
"A trade," said the captain. "Now for the harpoon and line."
These we got for a bar of iron and another stick of wood. It at first
seemed rather singular that they should prize a stick of ordinary
split wood so highly; but it was easily accounted for when we came to
reflect that this vast region is destitute of trees of any size. Wood
was almost as eagerly sought for as iron. I have no doubt that a very
profitable trade might be made with a cargo of wood along these
straits, exchanged for walrus-ivory, bear-skins, and seal-skins.
They wore a sort of jacket, or round frock, of bear-skin, with a cap,
or hood, fastened to the collar like the hood of a water-proof. It was
tied with thongs in front, and came down to the thigh. Kit bought one
of these for a jack-knife,--for a curiosity, of course. Wade also
purchased a pair of seal-skin moccasons, with legs to the knee, for a
butcher-knife; which gave us a chance to observe that the owner wore
socks of dog-skin, with the hair in. A pair of these were _chymoed_
from another man for a stick of wood.
Beneath their bear-skin frocks they wore a shirt of some thin skin,
which the captain pronounced to be bladder-skin,--of bears, perhaps. I
got one of these shirts for a jack-knife. Wishing to have an entire
outfit, we bought a pair of breeches of the man of whom we had
already purchased the boots, for a dozen spike-nails. These were of
fox-skin, apparently, with the hair worn next the skin. I noticed that
one man wore a small white bone or ivory trinket, seemingly carved to
represent a child. Pointing to it, I held out a butcher-knife,--a good
bargain, I fancied. Somewhat to my surprise, he _negga-mai-ed_ with a
very grave shake of his head. Two or three others who saw it shook
their heads too. Wishing to test him, I brought up a bar of iron, and
made another tender of both knife and iron. But he shook his head
still more decidedly, and turned away as if to put a stop to further
bantering on the subject. We were at a loss to know whether it was a
souvenir,--the image of some dead child, or an object of religious
reverence. Finally the captain pointed across the ice-field, where the
bear was sitting crouched on the margin of it, and said, "_Nen-ook_."
At that they all looked, and, espying him, gave vent to a series of
cries and shouts. Six of them immediately dropped into their _kayaks_
and set off after him. Reaching the ice, they landed, and pulled the
canoes on to it. Then, taking their harpoons, they divided into three
parties of two each. One of these went straight across toward the
bear; the second followed round the edge of the field to the right,
the third to the left. The bear must have been pretty severely wounded
by our six-ounce bullet, I think; for he paid no attention to their
approach till they were within four or five rods, when he made a
feeble attempt to get past them. They rushed up to him without the
slightest hesitation, and despatched him in a twinkling.