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protuberances on the back; one person thought it had protuberances, but it seems probable that the upper flexures of its undulations occasioned this opinion.

Its velocity is variously estimated; by some it was thought to move a mile in one minute, by others in three, four, or five minutes. It has great lateral flexibility, as is shewn by its turning short and moving in an exactly contrary direction, advancing the head in a line parallel with the body; hence its undulations, when under water and equally surrounded by the medium, may be either vertical or horizontal at the will of the animal. The judgment of its velocity, however, without knowing its precise distance, and without instruments to observe it, is extremely liable

to err.

In the testimonies above referred to, the imagination seems to have had no influence, and we certainly know from them, that the existence of the animal to which they relate is indisputable; we know that it moves by vertical undulations, at least while near the surface of the sea; that it is laterally as flexible as other serpents; and that its motion, at times, is very swift; but our knowledge is circumscribed by these limits. It is to be hoped, that if it again visits our shores, some successful means may be devised of taking it, and presenting an opportunity of completing our knowledge of so interesting a link in the chain of animated beings.

It has been seen in Long Island Sound, progressing southward; it seems from this circumstance to be migratory, like the Coluber Natrix in Hungary, and may pass the winter season in Mexico or South America.

ART. X. An Account of the Esquimaux, who inhabit the West Coast of Greenland, above the latitude 76°; in a Letter to the Editor from Captain Edward Sabine, of the Royal Artillery, F. R. S. and F. L. S.

DEAR SIR,

Portland Place, March 1, 1819.

I have much pleasure in complying with your request, in furnishing you with an account of the Esquimaux, who were dis

covered in the late voyage to the north-west; and I am free to do so, having been induced by circumstances, which it is unnecessary here to enter on, to give up the design which I had announced on my return, of a separate publication; I look forward to the far more extensive opportunities which I trust the next voyage will afford, to enable me to collect much better information than I at present possess for such purpose, should I then see occasion to resume my intention.

These Esquimaux inhabit a strip of the west coast of Greenland, between the parallels of 76° and 77°. Their principal winter residence is a few miles to the north of Cape Dudley Diggs which will be found in almost any of the maps in which the outline of Baffin's Bay is preserved; from this point they spread for 30 or 40 miles each way along the shore during the summer months, for the purpose of fishing; we saw only the extreme stragglers to the southward, who were in the large and open Bay facing the south, which is formed by a change in the direction of the coast in latitude 76°. We are indebted for the greater part of what we know concerning them to our valuable and most useful interpreter, John Zaccheus; without him we should not have suspected, nor could we have been assured as we are, that although they are genuine Esquimaux, scarcely distinguishable by any external difference in appearance or deportment from the natives of the coast to the southward, yet so long a time has elapsed since they have been settled where they are, and so entirely have they been insulated from all communication, that we found them ignorant, even by tradition, that there were other people in the world than themselves, or other places than the spot they occupied; and we should have wholly lost the high gratification we received in being spectators of the impression which a world opening to their view produced on minds so unprepared. As may be well supposed, their first emotions were those of fear. The appearance of the ships terrified them exceedingly, in the supposition that they were supernatural; that they were animals sent from the sun or moon to destroy them; (these planets are in the Esquimaux' belief the abode of spirits, whose interference is much oftener deprecated than courted.) They came down on the ice on the evening when

they were first seen, on the eighth of August, to the distance of about a mile from the spot where the ships were anchored, and set up a general shout, as we learnt afterwards, to frighten the animals. away; but when they heard the return of what we supposed was designed as hailing, they wheeled their sledges about, and drove off with increased alarm to their habitations on the shore, several miles distant. It was in vain that we put up a flag, and left presents on the ice, and sailed to a distance. We should never have induced them to come near us had not Zaccheus, with much boldness, ventured himself amongst them, and addressed them in their own language.

I propose to give a short account of our interviews, and a detail of the information we obtained. I took much pains to gain this information correctly. Zaccheus spoke English, but imperfectly; and instances were not uncommon, during the voyage, when it became evident that his meaning had been greatly misunderstood. I was therefore careful to avoid what are termed leading questions, and to let him always relate his story himself, writing it down, and laying it by for the time, and after an interval of some days putting him on the subject afresh, and again writing down what he said, and comparing the two accounts. I believe therefore what is stated on his authority is correct, so far as his authority goes.

We saw nothing of them on the ninth, but on the tenth several sledges were observed to come off from the shore, to some large icebergs about three or four miles from the ships, then anchored to the edge of the ice. The people who came in them got out at the foot, and ascended to the top of one of the icebergs, where they remained gazing at us. On observing them, Zaccheus was sent from the ship carrying a white flag, and some presents; he advanced to a lane of water as it is termed, at some little distance from them, which, as it fortunately happened, was just too wide to be passed, and therefore gave both parties confidence. He set up his flag, and called to them in Esquimaux to come to him, as he had some things to give them. After a time, four of the people on the icebergs were observed to quit them, and, with much hesitation and frequent stoppings by the way, to approach.

The fore

When they were near enough to converse, Zaccheus threw them a shirt, telling them that it was to keep them warm. most, who was the oldest, had a knife in his hand, with which he seemed disposed to stand on his defence, asking if we were come to kill them. Zaccheus told them that we were good people, and were come to do them service, and give them clothes, and thus drew them by degrees into conversation, but it was some time before he could persuade them to touch the shirt *. When this difficulty was overcome, their fears gradually subsided; they accepted some beads and a looking-glass, which was handed from one to another, and excited great laughter. They asked many questions about the ships, as whether they could fly as well as swim; where they came from; and, when they heard that they were houses full of men, they inquired what they were made of, and whether the sails were wings. Zaccheus invited them to come on board, which they agreed to do, if they could get across the lane of water, for which purpose he returned to the ships for a plank. On their coming up, a scene ensued which is beyond description; their astonishment was unbounded, and their expression of it extravagant, uncouth, and ludicrous in the extreme; by the most extraordinary gestures, exclamations at every thing they saw, and the most immoderate laughter. Their common exclamation was hi yaw, hi yaw, the last syllable very broadly pronounced and dwelt upon; reminding some of our gentlemen who had been with Lord Amherst, of the Chinese expression. The ice anchors, cables, boats, in short every thing which they saw, each in its turn, excited in the highest degree the rudest wonder that can be imagined. They were prevailed on to ascend the ships' side from the ice. The attention of the first man who got up was at once rivetted to a spare top mast which was on the

* Many instances are related in old voyages of the refusal of the Esquimaux, on first meeting with Europeans, to touch any thing, lest it should kill them. This soon wears off; but a similar superstition that they shall die if they swallow any thing, is not so easily removed. We could never prevail on them to do more than put biscuit, for instance, in their mouth; they would wait until they were not observed, and then throw it

away.

gang-way. He seemed unable to credit the evidence of his senses, or the assurance that it was wood. He examined it round and round, and asked again and again what it was. They were not very expert at climbing, and just as the second man had succeeded with some assistance in getting up, he took an alarm at a pig which he saw on the deck, and made his way back on the ice with great expedition. A third was attracted by the armourer's anvil, which he attempted to take up and run away with, but finding it too heavy to be lifted, he snatched up the hammer, leapt off the ship's side, and made off; but, upon being followed, dropt it, and was afraid to return.

They were extremely diverted on seeing a man go up to the mast-head, and on looking down the main-hatchway as they passed along the deck. They were taken into the cabin, and shewn various things to excite their surprise or interest. A concave mirror, which I had brought with me for such a purpose as the present, produced, we thought, the most effect in amusing them. They had no notion that there could be any language but their own, and persevered in talking to each of us through the day. On the whole, this interview was very entertaining, but not very useful to either party, beyond an introduction; they were in such an extreme state of astonishment as to be little capable of discrimination, and though it was attempted to question them, we could not confine their attention sufficiently to depend on their answers. They soon became impatient to get away, complaining of the heat of the cabin, and promising to return. They were given knives, clothes, looking-glasses, rings, and some other trifling presents, and left us their own knives and spears in exchange. One of the men, on receiving a string of beads, desired Zaccheus to say that he was much obliged, and would carry it home to his daughter. It was curious to notice, that a fondness for decoration was even here a characteristic of the female sex.

We had removed, by the 13th of August, to a few miles higher up the coast, where we had a much more interesting visit from a father and his son, the latter a boy about twelve years old. The news had spread along the shore, that the ships were very pretty houses, and contained good people, who gave away wood and

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