Every lamp now swimming with oil, the huts exhibited a blaze of light, and never was there a scene of more joyous festivity than while the operation of cutting up the walruses continued. I took the opportunity, which their present good-humour afforded, to obtain a perfect head and tusks of one of these animals, which we had not been able to do before; and, indeed, so much were their hearts opened by the scene of abundance before them, that I believe they would have given us anything we asked for. This disposition was considerably increased also by their taking into their heads that their success was in some way or other connected with, or even owing to, our having taken up our night's lodging at the huts.
After viewing all this festivity for some time, I felt disposed to rest; and, wrapping myself up in my fur coat, lay down on one of the beds which Illumea had given up for our accommodation, as well as her k=eipik, or large deerskin blanket, which she rolled up for my pillow. The poor old woman herself sat up by her lamp, and in that posture seemed perfectly well satisfied to doze away the night. The singularity of my night's lodging made me awake several times, when I always found some of the Esquimaux eating, though, after we lay down, they kept quite quiet for fear of disturbing us. Mr. Halse, who was still more wakeful, told me that some of them were incessantly employed in this manner for more than three hours. Indeed, the quantity of meat that thus they contrive to get rid of is almost beyond belief.
Having at length enjoyed a sound nap, I found on waking, about five o'clock, that the men were already up, and had gone out to renew their labours on the ice, so that several of them could not have rested more than two or three hours. This circumstance served to correct a notion we had entertained, that, when once abundantly supplied with food, they took no pains to obtain more till want began again to stare them in the face. It was now more pleasing to be assured that, even in the midst of plenty, they did not indolently give themselves up to repose, but were willing to take advantage of every favourable opportunity to increase their store. It is certain, indeed, that, were these people more provident (or, in other words, less gluttonous, for they do not waste much), they might never know what it is to want provisions, even during the most inclement part of the year. The state of the ice was to-day very unfavourable for their purpose, being broken into pieces so small that they could scarcely venture to walk upon it.
The morning of the 5th proved favourable for a journey I had in contemplation to the distant huts, to which Iligliuk, who had come to Winter Island the day before, promised to be my guide. At six o'clock I set out, accompanied by Mr. Bushnan and two of the men, carrying with us a supply of bread-dust, besides our own provisions and blankets. As the distance was too great for her son Sioutkuk to walk, we were uncertain, till the moment of setting out, how this was to be managed, there being no sledge at hand for the purpose. We found, however, that a man, whom we had observed for some time at work among the hummocks of ice upon the beach, had been employed in cutting out of that abundant material a neat and serviceable little sledge, hollowed like a bowl or tray, out of a solid block, and smoothly rounded at the bottom. The thong to which the dogs were attached was secured to a groove cut round its upper edge; and the young seal-catcher, seated in this simple vehicle, was dragged along with great convenience and comfort.
The ice over which we travelled was a level floe that had never suffered disturbance since its first formation in the autumn, and with not more than an inch and a half of snow upon it. The path being distinctly marked out by the people, sledges, and dogs that had before travelled upon it, one might, without any great stretch of the imagination, have almost fancied it a road leading over a level and extensive heath towards a more civilized and substantial village than that which we were now approaching, Iligliuk walked as nimbly as the best of us: and, after two hours' and a half brisk travelling, we arrived at the huts, and were received by the women (for all the men were absent) with every expression of kindness and welcome. Each was desirous of affording us lodging, and we had speedily arranged matters so as to put them to the least possible inconvenience.
These huts, four in number, were, in the mode of their construction, exact counterparts of those at Winter Island on our first visit, but, being new and clean, presented a striking contrast with the latter, in their present disordered and filthy state. What gave a peculiarity, as well as beauty also, to the interior appearance of these habitations, was their being situated on the ice, which, being cleared of the snow, presented a flooring of that splendid blue which is, perhaps, one of the richest colours that nature affords. A seal or two having been lately procured, every lamp was now blazing, and every =o=otk~ose~ek smoking with a hot mess, which, together with the friendly reception we experienced, and a little warmth and fatigue from travelling, combined in conveying to our minds an idea of comfort which we could scarcely believe an Esquimaux hut capable of exciting.
On the arrival of the men, who came in towards evening with two seals as the reward of their labour, we were once more greeted and welcomed. Arnaneelia, in particular, who was a quiet, obliging, and even amiable man, was delighted to find my quarters were to be in his apartment, where An=e=etka, his wife, a young woman of about twenty-three, had already arranged everything for my accommodation; and both these poor people now vied with each other in their attention to my comfort. The other two apartments of the same hut were occupied by Kaoongut and Okotook, with their respective wives and families; it being the constant custom of these people thus to unite in family groups whenever the nature of their habitations will allow it. Mr. Bushnan being established with Okotook, and the two men with Kaoongut, we were thus all comfortably lodged under the same roof.
Toolooak having been concerned in killing one of the seals just brought in, it fell to his mother's lot to dissect it, the neitiek being the only animal which the women are permitted to cut up. We had therefore an opportunity of seeing this filthy operation once more performed, and entirely by the old lady herself, who was soon up to her elbows in blood and oil. Before a knife is put into the animal, as it lies on its back, they pour a little water into its mouth, and touch each flipper and the middle of the belly with a little lamp-black and oil taken from the under part of the lamp. What benefit was expected from this preparatory ceremony we could not learn, but it was done with a degree of superstitious care and seriousness, that bespoke its indispensable importance. The boys came eagerly into the hut as usual, and held out their foreheads for the old woman to stick the charms upon them; and it was not till now that we learned from Iligliuk the efficacy of this very useful custom. As soon as this dirty operation was at an end, during which the numerous by-standers amused themselves in chewing the intestines of the seal, the strangers retired to their own huts, each bearing a small portion of the flesh and blubber, while our hosts enjoyed a hearty meal of boiled meat and hot gravy soup. Young Sioutkuk ate at least three pounds of solid meat in the first three hours after our arrival at the huts, besides a tolerable proportion of soup, all which his mother gave him whenever he asked it, without the smallest remark of any kind. We now found that they depended on catching seals alone for their subsistence, there being no walruses in this neighbourhood. As they were several miles from any open water, their mode of killing them was entirely confined to watching for the animals coming up in the holes they make through the ice.
In the course of the evening our conversation happened to turn on the Indians, a people whom none of these Esquimaux had ever seen; but with whose ferocity and decided hostility to their own nation they seemed to be well acquainted. They described, also, their peculiar manner of paddling their canoes, and were aware that they made use of the kind of show-shoes which we showed them. When I related to them, as well as I was able, the massacre of the Esquimaux recorded by Hearne, and gave them to understand that the Indians spared neither age nor sex, it seemed to chill them with horror, and I was almost sorry that I had told them the story.
April 11.—We were now glad to begin making some show of re-equipping the ships for sea; for though this was a business that might, if necessary, have been very well accomplished in two or three weeks, it was better to employ the men in occupations having an evident and determinate object, than in those less obviously useful ones to which it was necessary to resort during the winter. We therefore brought down some of the boats to the ships to repair, put up the forge on the ice, and built a snow house over it, and set about various other jobs, which made the neighbourhood of the ships assume a busy and bustling appearance.