Page:Life with the Esquimaux - 1864 - Volume 2.djvu/175

156 before Koojesse sighted a seal floating a little distance off on our right. He instantly prepared for a shot, and stood up in the bow of the boat ready to fire. In another moment, and within twenty-five feet of the seal, crack went the rifle. A floundering commenced, the boat was in an instant alongside of the prey, and Koojesse laid hold of his prize with both hands, the other Innuits immediately aiding him. I shall not soon forget that scene. A line was thrown around the seal's flippers, but the animal was still alive, and struggled so much that all the power we had could hardly get it into the boat. As it was drawn up, the dying seal glanced around and upon us with its plaintive eyes, and its innocent-looking face seemed to plead for mercy, as though it were human. I actually felt a shudder creeping over me as it looked at us; but, on the instant, a knife in the hands of Kooperneung was buried deep in it. Another struggle, and the poor seal lay dead. Koojesse told me that occasionally, on a windy day, seals will thus float upon the surface of the water for the sake of having the wind blow on their backs. A little later we landed at Ek-ke-le-zhun, a point of interest and importance to me. This place is a tongue of land which juts out nearly half across the bay, and serves to form above it one of the safest and finest harbours I ever saw. The scenery around is grand and impressive, and I saw enough to convince me that it is a most desirable spot for a vessel to anchor in. While the Innuits were feasting on the seal I took a walk upon the shore. All the land above high-water mark was covered with snow; but, looking attentively on the ground, to my delight I discovered a small, thin lamina of coal. On the day we left Oopungnewing (August 13th), on our voyage up Frobisher Bay, Koojesse told me that he knew of a place not far off, up a bay, where there was a great deal more of the coal such as I had found at Niountelik. My experience, now narrated, shows both that Koojesse was honest in his statement, and also—which is a point of great importance—that the Esquimaux traditionary history, extending back for centuries, is wonderfully accurate.