Native Americans: 22 Books on History, Mythology, Culture & Linguistic Studies. James Mooney

to death. Another method is to roll a strip of whalebone, about two feet long, in a coil, which is tied up with sinews. At each end a small metal edge is attached to the whalebone. This strip, wrapped in a piece of blubber or meat, is gulped down by the hungry wolf. As it is digested the sinews are dissolved and the elastic strap is opened and tears the stomach of the animal. A very ingenious trap is described by Parry (II, p. 514):

      It consists of a small house built of ice, at one end of which a door, made of the same plentiful material, is fitted to slide up and down in a groove; to the upper part of this a line is attached and, passing over the roof, is led down into the trap at the inner end, and there held by slipping an eye in the end of it over a peg of ice left for the purpose. Over the peg, however, is previously placed a loose grummet, to which the bait is fastened, and a false roof placed over all to hide the line. The moment the animal drags at the bait the grummet slips off the peg, bringing with it the line that held up the door, and this falling down closes the trap and secures him.

Foxes are usually caught in traps. An ice house about six feet high is built of hummocks, which are cut down with the point of the spear. It is covered with ice slabs, only a hole in the center being left. Blocks of snow and slabs of ice are piled up around the building so as to permit easy access to the roof. Some blood is sprinkled round the hole to attract the fox and a larger bait is placed upon the floor of the house. The fox jumps down and, as the only exit is in the center of the roof, cannot escape. Another trap has a slab of ice erected in such a manner as to fall and kill the fox when he touches the bait.

      A third trap, similar to the one above mentioned, has been described by Lyon, p. 339:

      It is like a small lime kiln in form, having a hole near the top, within which the bait is placed, and the foxes (for these animals alone are thus taken) are obliged to advance to it over a piece of whalebone, which, bending beneath their weight, lets them into prison, and then resumes its former position: thus a great number of them are sometimes caught in a night. In the summer they are but rarely taken, and it is then by means of a trap of stones, formed like the ice trap, with a falling door.

      Hares are either killed with small shot or with arrows or caught in whalebone snares, as are ermines and lemmings.

      Fig. 452. Whalebone nooses for catching waterfowl. (In the possession of Captain Spicer, of Groton, Conn.)

      Waterfowl of all descriptions are caught in abundance in whalebone nooses (Fig. 452) fastened to a long whalebone line or to a thong. The line is set along the edge of a lake, particularly near nesting places. In shallow lakes these lines are placed across the water to catch the diving and swimming birds, which are drawn to the shore with the line. On the low egg islands, which are inhabited by innumerable ducks, snares are set on the nests, and great numbers are caught in a short time. Swans and geese are procured in the same way. Other birds, and particularly partridges, are killed with arrows and with small shot.

      Large flocks of ducks and other kinds of birds fly through certain valleys in the fall and in spring when migrating. Great numbers are caught here without any difficulty, as they can be killed with sticks.

      A favorite method of catching gulls is by building a flat snow house. One block of the roof is translucent and so thin as to permit the hunter, who is hidden in the house, to push his hand through it. A bait is placed on this block, and as soon as a bird alights to feed it is pulled through the roof into the hut.

By far the greater number of birds are caught during the molting season. Partridges can be caught with the hand and waterfowl are pursued with the kayak. The waterfowl dive as soon as the boat comes near them and being frightened down again as soon as they rise they are eventually drowned. One species of goose (kango) which frequents the lakes of the country is caught in a remarkable way. A circular wall of stones is raised, with a single entrance. The Eskimo drive a flock of these birds towards the building, one man, whom the stupid creatures follow, leading the way. As soon as they have entered the wall the entrance is shut up and they are slaughtered. If they happen to be met with on the water they are encircled by kayaks and driven towards the shore, one boat leading. Then they are driven within the stone wall as already described.

      Fig. 454. Ivory fish used as bait in spearing salmon.

       a From Repulse Bay. a, c, d (National Museum, Washington. a, 10400; c, 34109; d, 34134.) 1/1 b (Museum für Völkerkunde, Berlin. IV A 6830.) 1/1

      Fishing

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The most important fish is the salmon, which is caught in abundance during the summer. When the lakes begin to break up the salmon descend to the sea, following the narrow lead between the land floe and the water. In some places they are so plentiful as to fill the water completely. Here they are speared with the kakivang (Fig. 453). This instrument consists of a handle which widens towards the end; in the center it has a prong of bone or iron, and two larger ones at the sides, made of deer antlers or musk ox horn. These latter diverge and are furnished with a bone or iron nail on the inner side. The elasticity of these side prongs is increased by thongs or strings holding them tightly together. If the salmon are very plentiful no bait is needed and the natives cannot spear them as quickly as they swim along. When the ice is gone they are caught in the shallow rivers falling from the lakes into the sea. The natives stand on the bank or step into the water. A small ivory fish (Fig. 454) (eχalujang), tied by two or three holes in the back to a plaited string of deer sinews, is used as a bait. Frequently bear’s teeth are used for bait. They are attached to a separate line which the hunter continually moves up and down to attract the attention of the fish. When the salmon comes near the bait it is speared with the kakivang. In the left hand the fisherman holds an instrument for stringing the fish (quqartaun), some illustrations of which are given in Fig. 455. It is made of ivory. A thong fastened to the hole of the instrument has a thick knot at the opposite end. As soon as a salmon is caught it is taken out of the nippers (kakivang) and the point of the quqartaun is pushed into the gills and brought out again at the mouth; thus the fish remains sticking until it is dead. Sometimes it is killed by pushing the ivory point of the instrument into its neck. When dead it is pushed on the thong.

      Fig. 453. Kakivang or salmon spear. (National Museum, Washington, a, 34087; b, 34086.) ¼

      Fig. 455. Quqartaun for stringing fish. c (Museum für Völkerkunde, Berlin. IV A 6831.)

      At some places wears are built, above which the fish are caught. These consist of dikes of stones about one and a half or two feet high, which are piled across a creek some distance below high water mark. The salmon cross the wall at high water, but are cut off from the sea at half tide and are speared while there. In other places the forks of rivers are shut off by dikes, above which the salmon gather.

      In autumn salmon are caught when ascending the rivers. Sometimes they linger too long in small ponds and, as the rivers quickly dry up at this season, are prevented from getting out of the pools. Here they are caught until late in the season. Some of these ponds freeze to the bottom in winter, and the natives, when visiting them in the spring, cut holes in the ice and take out the frozen fish.

      Fig. 456. Salmon hook. (National Museum, Washington. 10142.) 1/1

      Fig. 457. Salmon hook. (Museum für Völkerkunde, Berlin.