In the land of ice

ROBIN KARTIKEYA

The eskimos are a sturdy race though small in stature. Their staple diet is seal meat. Seals are valuable to them in many ways - supplying them with boots, clothing, tents, light, heat and harpoon lines. The eskimos use a kayak, a small slim boat with a framework covered with skin, for fishing. The dog-sledge is used widely, except by the eskimos in South-West Greenland.

The eskimos are a cheerful and generous race, friendly and hospitable to strangers. Their pastimes are athletics and dramatics. Their dwellings are of two kinds, tents for summer and houses, huts or igloos for winter. The tents are made of sealskin; but the winter dwellings are built of stone, covered with moss and banked up with snow. In North Alaska the huts are half under the ground.

Some of these winter dwellings shelter as many as 40 or 50 persons. Men and women dress alike - in trousers of seal or deer skin, according to the season, and in a loose-fitting shirt, surmounted by a hood, which is enlarged for women and children. The women spend most of their time in making the clothing and tents.

The Danish and Canadian governments try to preserve their life, culture and self-sufficiency by moving them to better hunting grounds.

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