The Eskimo bulletin. [volume], May 01, 1902, Page 3, Image 3

About The Eskimo bulletin. [volume] (Cape Prince of Wales [i.e. Wales], Alaska) 1893-1902

Image provided by: Alaska State Library Historical Collections

                
Drifted Out to Sea.
Continued from page I.
\Ve found at least seventy-five men ahead of
us. They were seated around the numerous
patches of open water between the Hoes. By
the middle of the afternoon, most of these
hunters had killed their seals, and had stal l
ed to drag them home, a distance of eight
or nine miles. Wo were less successful. \V'e
missed the few seals we saw, because incom
ing up to blow, they only exposed the Ujs of
their uc-jes and eyes. Throughout too day we
kept, working southward, when changing our
position, so as not to drift Into the Arctic.
Not wishing lo return homo Without a seal,
1 lingered behind, hoping to get one. But
hear ng the danger call, Kto-ook! Koo-ook!
Kno ook! given by someone who had reached
the shore ice, I knew the wind had changed
and I would have t<> run lor my life. 1 svas
t «> late. When I arrived, l found a channel
01 water, and slush lee, one hundred yards
wide, between me and my brother, who was
standing on tho shore Ice. The wind was In
• rettslug, and the channel was w.deuing o\ -
»uy minute. I hastily put on tny snow-shoes,
and made two atteini s in cross. But each
time l got into the water up to my waist,
Darkness coming on, 1 gave tip all hope of
being able lo cross. 1 called to my brother
and told him l was a little wet. 1 pulled oiT
my is lots, poured the water out of them,
wrung tln» water trout my deer sox, and tho
bottom of my seal pants, and then put my
s io sen again. The change made my feel
veiycold. and it kept me kicking them to
g tin t all night, to Keep them from freezing,
i u.. de a little aimw shelter, but did not dare
tu to mini siill in it very long at atlnie. Dur
ing the n ght l ate almost till my dried ap
ples. I s opt none.
W hen ii.iy.'ight came, 1 hardly kui'w which
way to go. The weather was thlek. Out from
a s ight brightu ss in the sky, where I thought
Ihosun ought to tie, 1 concluded the wind
was still Irom the east, and so 1 decided to
! i find my way to tlio Diomede Islands. 1 put
>t n • s tow-shot », and stalled in a south
. n r direction About 10 o clock, the ptak
ha k oi the t ape was tidble a few minutes,
si 1 knew the wind was still in the easf, and
t s long . s It continued front that, direction,
it would ho a safe guide tor me. During the
night 1 had drifted north west from the Cape.
The ice was quite level. I walked fast, and
sometimes mil. About noon 1 had iinighed
tn> dried apples. I looked all day to set* the
Is 'tnds, hut the fog never lifted enough for
me u> get a glimpse of them. I travelled as
long as 1 lould so. 1 had a miserable night
ot it. My clothing was still wet. 1 slept none.
When day-light came, 1 started off In a south
easterly direction again. About i.oou the
log lifted, so that I could see the base of the
is amis directly west of me. so 1 changed my
c<niise accordingly. After I hud gone a short
distance on my new course, 1 saw a Po
lar boar and her cub. They were lying on
the ice, near some open water. My course
brought me within i860 yards of them. Hut l
was too anxious to reach land to think of
stopping to shoot them. Just alter I had pass
ed them, they plunged lulo the water, am!
disappeared.
During the afternoon of this second day, 1
felt very lonely and down hearted. 1 was so
weak by this time, that 1 had to walk tery i
slow, and rest often. Once while n sting, I
by prostrating my self on the Ice. I felt that 1
had no strength to go on, and must give up
and die where I was lying Hut a * o ce seem
ed to say tome, Klh! Klh! Kilt! ( go ahead.)
I obeyed, and did not stop until 1 had roa< h- ;
ed the shot e-lee of the “bn all Diomedea." j
As t stepped from the driftli g ice field, to 1
the solid shore-ice, l felt that I was saved, I
found a sheltered place, under a projecting
rock, and passed the night us I had the two
previous ones, ouly ft seemed much linger, ,
and colder. The creaking, and groaning of |
the drifting Ice-floes, grinding against the |
shore-ice, sounded good to me, because it
constantly reminded me, that I was on Im
movable loe.
Daylight came at last. I started to go a
round the northern end of the Island to the
village, which I thought was about throe
miles away. But l soon discovered that all
the shoro-iee on this end of the island had
gone out. The shore was too steep to climb,
so i had to retrace my steps, and try to reach
the village by going around the south
east end of the Island, a distance of about 8
miles. Fortunately, I found a little shore
ice all the way around. But It was bo rough,
that It took me all dty to reach the village.
My feet bothered me in walking, i had slight-'
ly frozen the bottom of all my toes, during
the night.
.lust us i arrived at the village, a woman
on top of one of the houses saw me, and
shouted down through the sky-wimP>ws, “No
tax-ite has come." The people all rushed
out of their houses to give me a welcome, and
hear the news from the main-land. But when
they discovered my condition, they lost no
time In taxing mo into the Kosge, ami placed
a dish of boiled walrus moat before me.
They then made me some tea, and “Muk
powruks,"(doughnuts fi led In seal oil). With
the ext option of the dried apples, this was
the lii'Ht food l had tasted, since the supper
1 ale at home, ninety six lours before.
A tier three weeks of feasting hero, Saiu,
Chief of tin' Big Dlomedes Island, s 'iitasled
to haul me to his settlement. I spent a very
pleasant Week with them. Every family In
sisted on feasting mo to the best they had in
store.
Alter i returned to the Small Dlomedes, r
arranged with a friend of mine, to go home
with me ea soon ns the ice was favorable.
To my great Joy, the wind began to blow
from the north-west, in a few days the Ice
was packed into the strait, between the Is
lands, and the Cape. On the morning of
M arch 8, we started, and reached the Cape
a little after dark."
GONE IN QUEST OF
A WIFE.
Ow.Hook failed to return homo from
Real hunting, ouo day in Mai eh. It i«
supp. soil that ho went to the islands,
in quest of a wife.
Miss Ok-zi-ya, an island l elie, who
lnul been wintering here, and whom
he had i ouited unsuccessfully for .Sev
ern! months, had gone home, a few
days previous to Ow-sook's depaiture,
with two relatives, who were returning
to the island. It is thought that she
fled to her island home, to avoid furth
er nttenth ns from her Cape lover,
but that this now proof of his affect
ion for her, will bring about a suooests
fu 11 termination of his winter's court
ship.
HOARDS OLD WAL
RUS IVORY.
Toe-nuk, of Im-ang-nok, (35 miles
up the coast,) came to town a few days
ago, with ten walrus tusks to trade. 1
They weighed about 75 pounds, and
represented the accumulation of eight;
years of “beach combing.” He failed |
to make a deal with the ooma-liksl
(tiaders)here, and hauled them back
home. This summer’s storms may
throw m> more 8e-loo (dead walrus),
and add a few more tusks to his hoard.
The Cape Reindeer
Transportation Co.,
is always prepared to take
contracts for winter freight
ing.
A few sled-deer for sale.
Jas. Keok, Manager.
*i* T* ^ *$**$* ^ dh* 4*
A, Jjt.Jk.jtkL.Jk.j6t.jtk $tk t/W
Polar Bear Skins for
Sale at TAN-E-NA’S.
Kl-YA-TOO-MEET KOS OJi.
Larged Social Hull, Gymnasium, ami
Work shop in town. Open, day and
uight. Galleries piovided for children,
[ Free to all. J
CLASSIFIED ADS.
LOST.
a OST — Jmle Labn-t. Ketiun t i Pe
I—* bi k-too-uk.
LOST — Ivory Ear-Kinga with Line
tet*. Kings conmcttd by five
strands of ltd, white1, ami blue brads.
Ketum to K, in raie of tin* Lull* tir.
FOR HALE.
F OR HALE ~6v-imMiksTA 1U 1/t.H,
20 to 40 feet long, — (Jive mo yoi i
order, a year before 3011 want your
boat. Ma lig-zro-uk.
FOR SALE — Whale, Walrus, anti
Heal blubber, hermetically tied t p
in seal bugs. Dried fish, and berries,
taken In exchange. Kit-sen-mi.
C* OR HALE — Pokes for pueuim.t.
* ie bob-sled runners. Tlicy ure jot
what you need h r hauling your boats
over the rough ice.
Ali-mok-a-wun-ut, and Father.