ich he was
forced to procure his food without artificial aid, the Inupash will
tell you; then, as his inventive genius began exercising itself, a
stone with a thong attached was employed to dispatch the game he
sought. The stick sharpened at one end was probably introduced about
the same time, it being the forerunner of the spear, which has proved
as useful for small game as it has for the great brown bear. When the
animal charged, the hunter quickly placed the butt of the spear on the
ground, and the bear, thus coming in contact with the sharpened end,
was pierced and killed. The noose also proved of service for bear and
deer. If hunting the former, a steep bank, where the creature was known
to walk, was chosen and the noose set. On becoming entangled, the bear
in its struggle fell over the bank, where it would hang until dead. The
sling probably never proved very efficacious, as its accuracy for birds
on the wing is too uncertain. It was useful for casting stones into the
ocean to frighten and drive the beluga into the nets set for that
purpose. The "kalimetown" was a far more effective instrument. It was
made of seven small ivory balls, each having a string of deer sinew
attached, the strings being joined at the end by a feather. On being
thrown into a flock of ducks on the wing, any one of the balls striking
a bird would act as a pivot for the others to encircle the victim and
bring it to the ground.

Bone or ivory hooks were used in fishing through the ice, the line
being made from strips of whalebone or spines from the feather of the
gannet. A spear formed from two pieces of bone arranged in the shape of
a V proved effective in capturing fish. The net was of service, not
only for fish and beluga, but also for ptarmigan and foxes. For the
latter, it was set stationary, the hunters remaining hidden in snow
shelters constructed for the occasion. On the approach of a fox, the
men in hiding jumped up and made a noise, and the frightened creature
in its efforts to escape was driven forward into the net. In netting
ptarmigan, the only caution necessary is not to frighten the birds, but
to keep them walking forward slowly. The meshes of the net are large
and of fine sinew; the bird on attempting to pass through, becomes
entangled. On the cliffs, during the summer months, the hand-net on a
pole is a favorite device for capturing the murres, which fly back and
forth among the rocks in immense numbers, making one continuous