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34th Night in an Igloo! Tuesday, Feb 12th 1861 This has been a very fine day & I have improved it by a walk westward across the Bay - "Budington Bay". In going I followed the track marked by Ebierbing's seal wh. he dragged after him early yesterday Morning. Much of the way I was troubled to discern any mark, so impacted was the snow by the late gale! I came across the seal-hole wh. "Smile" had destroyed by jumping upon & scratching it. Another seal-hole I came to - at least, I supposed one to be there & afterwards ascertained such to be the fact from E. I noticed seal dog-tracks to the point, & there saw little holes made by thrashing the spindle shank of the Oo-nar (spear) down through the deep hard snow. When a Seal-dog has scented a Seal-hole wh. may be 1, 2 or 3 feet beneath the top of the snow, the [[underlined]] Sealer [[/underlined]] commences [[underlined]] "prospecting" [[/underlined]] with the instrument indicated above, & as soon as the point of said shank of the Oo-nar reaches the dimutive Seal-hole (in the ice only) he, at once, assumes his position for remaining in wait the wished for "blow" of the seal. Not unfrequently does Sealer have to wait 2 days & as many nights, [[underlined]] & that too in the coldest weather of the Winter, [[/underlined]] all the time, [[underlined]] 'still as a mouse', [[/underlined]] before seal comes to its hole. When seal does come, its first noise is from the disturbance of the water. Sealer at once slips his hands down from the inside of his double Tuk-too fur jacket unbuttons the empty sleeves wh. are made fast together (the outer extreme of sleeves meeting to keep out [[end page]] [[start page]] 1861 Feb 12th Tuesday wind & cold) [[underlined]] takes [[/underlined]] back his beare arms & hands, [[underlined]] thrusts [[/underlined]] them down into the sleeves, [[underlined]] graspes [[/underlined]] his Oo-nar (spear) with his unmittened right hand & [[underlined]] strikes [[/underlined]] the unerring blow. Away goes "Pussy" with harpoon its nose (or somewhere in its head) the length of the seal line which is usually [[space]] feet. [[underlined]] Instantly [[/underlined]] Sealer gives a half turn to his Oo-nar bringing the other end tipped with an ice-point into play cutting away the snow & ice around the seal-hole of sufficient size to drag forth the victim. Once out, all holes made in the seal's head as it is drawn up to the opening are plugged with Walrus bone pins, or plugs, to prevent the loss of that [[underlined]] precious [[/underlined]] portion of the seal, its blood! In my course Westward I came across the place where E. captured his seal yesterday. It was about half way between the land or rather mountains of rock wh. seem to be universal at the North. There was the usual accompaniment the snow chair (Eeks-bou-tong) close by the Seal-hole which consisted of simply a block of snow on wh. the Sealer sits a good proportion of the time. By this Chair was a slab of snow placed to the windward to keep of the cold West wind that prevailed the day & night E spent there. [[image: drawing of snow chair and snow wind break annotated "Snow Chair" and showing points (A) and (B), snow, ice and seal blow hole]] (A) = 3/8 in hole made through the snow 2 feet deep by Oo-nar shank (B) Snow slab to keep wind off Around this chair unmistakable signs that a tobacco chewer & smoker was the sealer - half burnt matches, Ashes from a pipe & civilization paint such only as a tobacco chewer can make. But few marks of Seal Blood could be seen so careful are the Innuits of this. Thence I passed on over broken ice snow banks & now & then snow [[?charanes]]
