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district unusually rich in the character and extent of its mineral deposits.

The next point of interest in our progress to the Arctic is King, or Ukivok, Island, which lies perhaps twenty-five miles southwest of Cape Spencer, at the entrance to Port Clarence. This interesting island, except as to height, is a mere speck on the surface of the sea, being not over a mile long and half a mile wide; its shores, however, rise almost perpendicularly from the water's edge to a height of from 500 to 700 feet, presenting an altogether forbidding aspect. Along the whole of its coast line there is neither bay, cove nor sandy beach, and it is therefore wholly inaccessible except by small boats, and then only when the sea is calm. There is an Eskimo settlement on the south side of the island, at the only point, apparently, where it would be at all possible to construct habitations of any kind. This village is located on a rugged slope very difficult of ascent, at a height of at least a hundred feet above the sea, and at the base of which a landing cannot be effected even from small boats without a good deal of difficulty. The village is the most remarkable feature of the island, upon which neither tree nor shrub is to be seen, and but little vegetation of any kind. The settlement contains a summer and winter village in one-the summer houses, if such they can prop

erly be termed, being constructed of walrus hides

almost perpendicular cliffs by lashings and guys of walrus thongs. In constructing these singular habitations the ends of two or more poles are fitted into niches cut in the cliff, the outer ends being supported by others standing on end, and to which the horizontal ones are securely lashed -the perpendicular poles extending far enough above the horizontal ones to form the nucleus of a frame work upon which the hides enclosing the whole are stretched and fastened, the floor and roof being of the same material as the sides. There are, perhaps, fifty of these summer houses, with as many winter habitations, in which live about 400 natives of all ages and sexes. The winter house consists of excavations in the face of the cliff, the fronts being walled up with stones, chinked with moss, and leaving an entrance just large enough to enable a person to crawl in and out. The denizens of this northern Gibraltar live almost entirely upon the flesh of the walrus and seal, though there is some kind of plant indigenous to the island which constitutes a small part of their food supply. They carry on a summer trade with the natives of the Alaskan mainland, and also with those on the Siberian coast, with whom they exchange the skins of the seal and walrus for those of the reindeer and other furred

animals not found on their island. They are a naturally bright and intelligent people, all things considered, but exceedingly filthy in their persons and mode of living. The men are very expert hunters, using only the Kyak (bidarka) in their pursuit of the walrus and seal; the implements used in killing these animals are spears made of ivory, which they throw with great precision.

They very rarely venture far out to sea, however, in a single kyak, but usually lash two together so they will float side by side and cannot easily be overturned. For long voyages they use the oomiak (bidarra, or open skin boat), which is often large enough to carry from forty to fifty persons. In the construction of these boats no other material than wood and walrus hides are used, if we except the whalebone or sinew with which the skins are sewed and the frames fastened together. In the absence of timber on the island the people are obliged to depend upon what little driftwood they can pick up for fuel, and when that fails they resort to the use of seal and walrus blubber, the foul odor of which while burning is distressing even to the not oversensitive olfactory organ.

The King Island people have no history or tra dition other than that their ancestors came there a great many years ago, but from whence they

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