Page:Life with the Esquimaux - 1864 - Volume 1.djvu/193

172 with as much satisfaction as any food I had eaten in my life; and, in return for the friendly act of my Innuit hostess, I gave her a highly-coloured cotton handkerchief. She was in ecstasies with it, and the whole company joined with her in expressions of kindness and goodwill toward me. Clearly I had ingratiated myself with one party of the natives here, and this I was determined to do in like manner elsewhere. "Soon afterward I left them, and crawling out of their tent on all-fours, passed through the village toward the beach. On the way I heard a voice calling out 'Mitter Hall—Mitter Hall;' and, on turning round, perceived poor 'Blind George.' I went to him, and found that he was in great trouble. He tried to tell me all his grief, but with difficulty could he give utterance to his words. 'Ugarng,' said he, 'Ugarng home to-day? My pickaninny away go. Mitter Hall, speak-um, my piccaninny—speak-um, my pickaninny here.'

"The fact was that, as already stated, Ugarng had got his child, and the poor blind man wanted her to be with him for a while. I therefore spoke to Ugarng, and often afterward little Kookooyer was seen by her father's side.

"While in the village I called at another tent, and was treated to a liberal piece of 'black skin' after it had been well cleansed of foreign substances by the free application of a lady's tongue!" On November 10th I again visited the shore, accompanying the water-boat. We found the lakelet frozen over, and that our ice-axe by mistake had been left on board. This would have proved a great annoyance to us, had not one of the Esquimaux (Charley) brought his seal-spear to our aid, and speedily opened a good-sized "well-hole." In helping to carry the water, I fell into line with the natives, joining them in their mirthfulness of heart as they went along. As we passed the tuplcs, every woman and child gave a joyous smile and kindly word to the stranger. It was on this occasion, after I had been about two hours on shore, that I noticed something unusual had occurred. An excited crowd of natives were rapidly gathering round a young man who appeared to