LI.
SUBTERRANEAN DWELLINGS.
EARLIEST HABITATIONS.—UNDERGROUND HOUSES.—A DWELLING ON THE AMERICAN PLAINS.—HOW AN EARTH HOUSE IS MADE.—RESULT OF A NIGHT IN IT.—ARCTIC DWELLINGS.—A MANSION IN KAMCHATKA.—ITS ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES.—A CHIMNEY AND DOORWAY IN COMMON.—THE AUTHOR’S EXPERIENCE.—A LIVE DOG IN A STEW-KETTLE.—THE STORY OF GAMOOT.—HOW HE ENTERTAINED HIS FRIENDS.—FISH-OIL PUNCH AND A CANDLE BREAKFAST.—HOW HE LEARNED ENGLISH.—NEW MODE OF BOXING THE COMPASS.—GAMOOT’S MELANCHOLY FATE.
The climate of the Garden of Eden was of such a temperature, and the customs of Adam and Eve, before their famous fruit-gathering excursion, were of such a primitive character, that no dwellings were needed. It is not known that the weather ever compelled Adam and Eve to seek shelter, and they had no prying neighbors to disturb them; but, after the abandonment of the garden, it became necessary for them and their followers to have places of shelter. The first habitations were, probably, holes in the ground. The historians generally agree that the primitive habitations of the savage partake more or less of a subterranean character. At the present day there are many tribes of people that live wholly or partially under ground. Dwellings thus made are easy of construction, especially in regions where timber is not abundant, and the facilities for working in stone do not abound.
In the far west, between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains, there are many underground, or partly underground, dwellings, inhabited, not by savages, but by white men. Dwellings of this sort are not particularly dry, but they are generally cool, and, if one does not mind a little dampness, they are quite comfortable. My first experience with one of these habitations was not entirely agreeable. I had been travelling for several days, and sleeping at night under the shelter of a wagon. My bed was airy, and the only protection the wagon gave me was to keep away the dew, and prevent wandering mules and oxen from running over me. My health was excellent, and I was beginning to consider a house a superfluity.
We found a party of men living in one of these houses, where there was no wood for a long distance, or but very little of it, and they had dug out a place under ground, covered it with a roof consisting of poles, bushes, and turf, and were making themselves comfortable. They urged me to share their hospitality, and I did so, abandoning my wagon for the shelter of their roof. In the morning I awoke with one of the worst colds I ever had in my life, and for several days I had a very disagreeable and intimate acquaintance with a sore throat.
ESQUIMAUX DWELLINGS.