After having gone so far in a description of their persons, perhaps their diet ought not to be overlooked; because it has been before noticed, that the relaxed state of their flesh, and the sallow hue of their complexions, may in a great measure be ascribed to the nature of their food. As they seem to devour every thing raw, it has been conjectured that they are unacquainted with the use of fire; but this is not true. I observed, near one of their huts, a circle of loose stones, containing the ashes of a recently extinguished fire, and a stone kettle standing upon it[11]: also, in a hut, I saw a pan of vegetables, resembling spinach, which had been boiled into the consistency of paste[12]. Yet, after all, it is no less certain that an Esquimaux prefers all flesh raw. In proof of this it may be mentioned, that the Commander of the Eddystone, a Hudson’s-Bay ship, having shot a sea-gull, an Indian made signs that he wished for the bird: immediately on receiving it, he sucked away the blood that flowed from its mouth; then, hastily plucking off the feathers, he instantly dispatched the body, entrails, &c. with the most surprising voracity. The knowledge which the Esquimaux possess of the use of fire, is observable in the ingenuity with which they transform iron nails, hoops, &c. into heads for their arrows, spears, and harpoons. May not their fondness for raw flesh have arisen from the scarcity of fuel? There was not a bit of wood to be found on that part of the coast where I landed.
We made many attempts to induce the natives to partake of our food. At breakfast, we placed an Esquimaux at table, and offered him every species of food that the ship could afford. He tasted every thing; but, with a broad laugh, he was sure to eject whatsoever he tasted, over our plates and upon the table-cloth. The only thing they could be induced to swallow was a piece of hog’s lard; and of this they all partook with avidity. Above all, they appeared to have the greatest aversion from sugar and salt.
In their dealings, they manifested a strange mixture of honesty and fraud. At one moment I observed an Esquimaux striving, with all his might, to convey into a sailor’s hands the article for which he had already received his equivalent; and, in ten minutes afterwards, I detected the same man in an endeavour to cut the hinder buttons from my own coat. They value metals more than any other article of barter, and iron most of all. As a specimen of the relative articles of traffic, I shall briefly insert the prices which I paid for some little curiosities[13]; viz.
| A seal’s-skin hooded frock, quite new, for a | knife. |
| A seal’s-skin pair of breeches | needle. |
| Seal’s-skin boots | saw. |
| A pair of wooden spectacles, or rather shades, used by the Esquimaux to defend their eyes against the dazzling reflection of the sun from the ice | one bullet. |
| A pair of white feather gloves | two buttons. |
| A fishing lance or spear | file. |
They have a strange custom of licking with their tongue every thing that comes into their possession, either by barter or otherwise; and they evidently do not consider an article as their property until it has undergone this operation. By way of experiment, I gave to a young girl half a dozen iron nails: she immediately jumped, and shouted, to express her gratitude; and then licking each nail separately, she put them into her boot, that being the depository of all riches among the female Esquimaux, who are entirely unacquainted with the use of pockets. I could easily perceive that each man had a wife; but polygamy did not appear to exist amongst them; perhaps more on account of their poverty, and the difficulty of supporting a plurality of wives, than from any idea they may entertain of the impropriety of the practice itself. Several of the natives brought their wives on board the ship, and, in return for a tin spoon or pot, compelled them, nothing loath, to receive our salutations. Nay, one man plainly intimated, that if I wished to hold any private conversation with his lady, he should have no objection to her visiting my cabin, provided I rewarded him with an axe. Many of the women had very pleasing features; but they were so disfigured with dirt, and their persons smelt so strongly of the seal oil, that it required a stout heart to salute even the prettiest of them.
On board the ship, they were exceedingly curious in viewing every thing: but however astonished or delighted they might appear in the first sight of any novelty, yet ten minutes was the utmost limit of their admiration. The pigs, cats, and fowls, attracted their attention in so remarkable a manner, as to indicate a certainty of their not having seen any such animals before. A sailor threw them all into the most violent fit of jumping and shouting, by walking upon his hands along the deck. But nothing seemed to fix their attention so much as Captain Stopford’s amputated arm[14]: they satisfied themselves, by feeling the stump, that the arm was actually deficient, and then appeared to wonder how it could have been lost: but when I made signs to them that it had been severed by a saw, to the credit of their feelings, I must state, that commiseration was depicted on every countenance. We did not perceive an instance, either of man, woman, or child, amongst them, who was in any way crippled or deformed.
After breakfast, it was proposed that we should go on shore, and a party accordingly made: we were all well armed, as a precaution against treachery; because this people have been particularly accused of a disposition that way,—whether with or without reason, it is impossible for me positively to say. An Esquimaux, who had bartered his very last covering away for some bauble, went with us, as a sort of pilot. On our way to the shore, we met two of the large women’s boats; each steered, as usual, by an old man. They expressed great joy at meeting with us, by singing, shouting, and clapping their hands; and instead of proceeding on toward the ships, they turned their boats, and followed us to the shore. The coast appears to be completely fringed with small rocky islands, and these no doubt form a shelter to many good harbours; but the shores of Hudson’s Straits have never been thoroughly examined, although a small vessel might accomplish the task in two summers, with ease: indeed, a voyage for this purpose would, if well conducted, turn out advantageously, in a mercantile point of view; for although the Hudson’s-Bay Company’s ships do not procure much oil or whalebone from the Esquimaux, it is because they have but little intercourse with this people, and perhaps with only one particular tribe: yet it might be very profitable to any merchant to send a small strong brig into Hudson’s Straits, early in the month of June, so as to reach Cape Saddle-Back before the Company’s ships arrive. The Hudson’s-Bay Company would not wish to interrupt so laudable an attempt towards opening a free intercourse with the wild Esquimaux in those seas; because the profits they derive from the traffic in question are comparatively trifling, when put in competition with the other more important objects of their annual voyage. A vessel intended for this employ should not remain later than the beginning of October in the Straits; and she ought to be well provided with saws, iron lances, harpoons, files, open knives, kettles, spoons, hatchets, and a few beads and looking-glasses. By coasting along both sides of the Straits, and as far to the southward of Cape Diggs or Cape Smith, she might doubtless gather thirty or forty tons of good oil, besides whalebone and a few skins. But the Master of a vessel, during such an expedition, should be particularly cautious in not trusting a boat on shore, unless well armed; and by no means ought he to admit more than two or three Esquimaux at the same time into his vessel, however friendly they might appear to be.
But to return to our party, whom I left pulling in for the shore, under the guidance of the naked Esquimaux, who continued pointing for us to proceed still farther to the west, where some natives, from the bottom of a creek, waved their hands for us to approach. A sort of expostulation took place between these people and our conductor, by which it seemed, that the former did not wish us to proceed any farther to the west. We therefore landed, but walked about some time without observing any habitations; although, from the deers’ bones and ashes which lay scattered about the hills, it was evident that a party had not long quitted the spot. From appearances upon the hills, we had reason to suppose that rabbits must be abundant; and we were gradually receding from the sea shore in search of them, when our guide stopped short, and would not be prevailed upon, by any entreaties, to accompany us farther. We could not guess the cause of this extra-ordinary conduct; but not wishing to give any offence to the natives, we turned about, and descended again to our boats. On our way to the beach, we were joined by some young girls, to whom we had been, perhaps, rather pointedly attentive on board the ships: they continued to pester us with the continual whine of this people, repeating incessantly the word “Pillitay! pillitay! pillitay!” signifying “Give us something:” and having now stripped us of every thing, by their solicitations, they only seemed to have acquired an incitement to make new demands. It is generally the case with all barbarous nations, that the receiving of a gift appears to them to confer a right to levy fresh contributions: therefore, in all dealings with savages, it is adviseable to teach them that something will be expected in return for every present bestowed; and the equivalent should be strenuously insisted upon, let it be of ever so trifling a nature. A departure from this rule may, indeed, be necessary in the first opening of a communication with a strange people; but, even then, the presents ought only to be bestowed on the principal chieftains, priests, and women.
As we were upon the point of re-embarking, one of our party offered to a young girl, who stood on the beach, a pinch of snuff; shewing her, at the same time, how it was to be used. She imitated her instructor with great exactness, giving a hearty sniff; but it was attended with rather a violent effect; a torrent of blood instantly gushing from her nose. Entertaining some apprehensions lest the natives should imagine that we had been guilty of a premeditated injury to the poor girl, we all made a point of taking snuff before her: this had the desired effect, in convincing them that no serious evil was to be apprehended; and the young woman went, at my request, to wash her nose in a neighbouring pool. Unfortunately, the cold water produced a contrary effect to what was intended; the blood again streaming from her nose: yet so far was this mild creature from being offended, that she smilingly held forth her hand to me, with the old exclamation of “Pillitay! (Give).” I cut two brass buttons from my coat, and gave them to her; and with this atonement she was quite satisfied. The fact is, as we afterwards discovered, that bleeding at the nose is a most common incident among the Esquimaux; and it is certain to follow the least exertion. Possibly this may also be occasioned by the quantities of raw flesh they devour daily.
Perhaps some readers may deem an incident like the foregoing of too trifling a description to merit a recital; but the manners, dispositions, and customs of a wild people may be better judged of from a simple relation of the most trivial circumstances, than from any inferences which the narrator himself might presume to draw from them: therefore I would run the chance of being thought jejune, or even tedious, rather than incur the greater risk of misleading others by my own weak conclusions.