Page:The Netsilik Eskimos (1931).djvu/284

A moment afterwards an enormous topknot (qilErtinaluit) came in sight over the summit of the hills; it was his wife coming at his call, and she was so big that her breasts lay like two large seals over her body. She seized Inugpasugssuk, and as she did so her breasts swung against him with such force that he almost fell. But his foster-son hamstrung her too and, as she sank down, Inugpasugssuk killed her. Then they followed the giant-woman's footprints back and found her child, an infant, who had fallen out of her amaut as she ran, and there it lay on the ground squalling "una-una-una"". Its mother had been so excited and so eager to come to her husband's aid that she had not even noticed that her child had slipped out of her coat.

There were some people close at hand, and when they came up to look at the baby Inugpasugssuk amused himself by setting the women up on the child's penis; and so enormous was this infant that four women could sit on it side by side; and when the infant trembled a little they could not hold themselves on and all fell off. So immense was his strength.

Later on that infant went up to the sky and became Sila.

The wickedness of mankind turned him into a to'nraq who in time came to rule over wind and weather, rain and snow. He is wrapped up in the piece of caribou skin that was his napkin, and when he loosens the thongs that hold the skin together it begins to blow and rain.

When women are secretive about their uncleanness, that is to say when they tell nobody that they have their menses, or that they have had a miscarriage, Nârssuk punishes their village with storms; he loosens the thongs of his skin napkin and lets it blow, rain, snow or drift.

If bad weather continues, great seances are held and the boldest and cleverest shamans then have to go up to that place in the air where Narssuk is hovering. There they have to fight with him, and not until they succeed in tying his skin napkin tight about his body will the weather settle again.

It is said that Nârssuk's strength is enormous. One proof has already been mentioned, and that is that four women can sit on his penis side by side and still can be shaken off if only a slight shiver goes through his body. But there are other examples too.

There was once a shaman who was helping to drive meat on a sledge from a cache. On the way back he met Nârssuk in the middle of a ravine that had steep walls, high, steep walls. On meeting him he spoke and said this to him:

"Just let us see if you really are so strong. For people say that it