Page:The Netsilik Eskimos (1931).djvu/635

"It was as if I heard the growling of a beast because it was wounded."

His mother answered: "You only hit the edge of the window".

After that the mother lived on the bear. She never gave anything to her son; but he did not starve, because his sister concealed meat for him in her stockings.

In that way they lived until one day the brother said to his sister:

"I am tired of hearing the great northern diver crying up here by the lakes. Take me out to the sea."

His sister did as he asked, and out by the sea a loon flew up to them and licked his eyes. Then he could just see his surroundings. When the loon had licked his eyes three times he could even see tiny bits of grass growing far away in the distant valleys, and then went home to where he lived, singing. But when he saw the bear skin. hanging out to dry he went in and asked his mother who had killed it.

"Well I never! Can you see?" said his mother, who then was only too eager to give him bear meat to eat. But her son would not touch it and said "I shall find something else to eat some day".

One day he said to his sister:

"Sister, whom are you most fond of, mother or me?"

His sister answered: "I am fond of mother, of course, but I like you best."

Then her brother suggested that they should go to the edge of the ice and try to get a seal. He wanted his mother to help him, as he would harpoon the seals while she held the other end of the harpoon line. They saw two bearded seals, a mother and its cub. Aningaut transfixed the seal-mother, which pulled Agtulrarnaut out at such a speed that she had to run to the edge of the ice, and then she disappeared under the water. When she came up again she cried:

"alo — alo alugta horme qinmintaina — pinorajo'p qa nut pibi.unuk qutqa ivjorunano sardliaruvkit milugtitlagit — aglǝq!"

That was the last thing she said, and then she appeared no more.

Afterwards both brother and sister wandered into the interior and had many adventures. They came to a ravine that was barred by lemmings, who were fighting among themselves, so they had to go round. about. Another time their path was blocked by ermines that were fighting, then by marmots, then by hares, then by foxes, by wolves, by wolverines, by polar bears, by black bears, and finally by maggots, all fighting. Those they jumped over, but nevertheless the maggots caught hold of the corner of the sister's coat and her brother had to cut it loose.

They walked and walked and continued walking until they came down to the sea. There they saw a breathing-hole hunter. He disap-