Page:The frozen North; an account of Arctic exploration for use in schools (IA frozennorthaccou00hort).pdf/83

 together with the heat from the bodies of the many human beings who are packed in this small space, raise the temperature in the tent to such a degree that even in the most severe weather, the natives strip off all their clothing. In the winter they live, cook, and work in the inner tent; the outer tent, used in summer, is built around the inner tent. The skins of the outer tent are older and thinner than those of the inner one.

The Tchuktche women work very hard. They take care of the children, cook, sew, and keep the tent in order. They receive the game and cut it up, in winter in the tent and in summer on the beach. They help with the fishing; they tan the hides and prepare thread from the sinews. The men provide the food, which they obtain by fishing, hunting, and trading. But in and around the tent they do nothing but put their hunting tools in order, or play with the children.

Tchuktche children are healthy and hearty. They often cross from one tent to another entirely naked, when the weather is bitterly cold. The children are petted and treated very kindly. The older people never utter an angry word to them, or punish them. For playthings they have dolls, bows, and windmills with sails. Tchuktche children are very well-behaved. A little girl fell down the ship's stairs head first, and received so severe a blow that her hearing was nearly destroyed, yet she scarcely uttered a cry. A small boy of four years once visited the ship. He was so wrapped up in furs that he looked like a ball and could hardly move. He fell into a ditch which had been cut in the ice on the deck, and could not get out. The small Tchuktche did not make a sound, but waited patiently until some one saw him lying there and rescued him.