Tales the Eskimos tell, selected and retold . the stick live when it falls in the water.(Torngak, be near me.) As the angekok finished speaking hethrew the stick into the water. It sank. After a short time a fish came up andsaid to him, I am very wet and cold. I would 36 rather be on the land again/ So the angekok took the fish out of thewater and folded a piece of seaweed around it. This will keep you warm until you getused to living in the w^ater. It is the will of mytomgak that you live there and be useful to allthe Eskimo people. We shall call you Excalu-pik, the Trout. Go, now
Tales the Eskimos tell, selected and retold . the stick live when it falls in the water.(Torngak, be near me.) As the angekok finished speaking hethrew the stick into the water. It sank. After a short time a fish came up andsaid to him, I am very wet and cold. I would 36 rather be on the land again/ So the angekok took the fish out of thewater and folded a piece of seaweed around it. This will keep you warm until you getused to living in the w^ater. It is the will of mytomgak that you live there and be useful to allthe Eskimo people. We shall call you Excalu-pik, the Trout. Go, now, into the water andstay. So saying, the angekok threw the troutback into the water and it obeyed the voice ofthe great and good angekok. Even yet the Eskimo people tell the storyof the angekok who gave them the trout, andthey will show you the stripe that runs alongits side. This stripe, they will tell you, is theseam where the folds of seaweed met when theangekok wrapped it around the poor wet fish. So, you see, the story must be true. 37. 38 THE STORY OF THELAME HUNTER There was once a hunter who was lame,and although he was a good hunter he foundit very hard to keep up with the other menwhen they went hunting for bears and seals. One day he went up on a hill to spy forseals on the ice. There were no seals in sight,but far off on the ice he spied a bear. But therewas no use trying to get near enough to shootthe bear, for the poor lame hunter could notwalk fast enough and the bear was makingfor the drift ice. Oh, if my torngak would only come tomy aid! he said. Then he began to moan andgroan as if in terrible pain. He thought that ifhe groaned loudly enough his torngak would 39 hear him and come to his aid. He closed hiseyes and said, **If I could get that bear, nobodywould be able to say that I was a poor hunterany more. I would be the best hunter, for noneof the others are killing anything and thepeople are going hungry. When he opened his eyes he saw that thebear was walki
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, bookidtalese, booksubjecteskimos
