Viewing page 515 of 661

This transcription has been completed. Contact us with corrections.

(page 4)
1861 Oct 21 Mon.

are forced to remain here, will have to be spent living among the people that we where at home call [[underlined]] "Esquimaux". [[/underlined]]  I shall endeavor to spend my time profitably among them, learning as much as I possibly can of their language, customs, history &c. &c.  I must at once endeavor to secure enough took-too skins of the Innuits as will make me a good Winter suit (double dress) Innuit style.  Warm clothing & fresh food will conduce more to make my comfortable through the very cold weather that prevails here in the winter than anything else that can be imagined.
I have just returned (3 PM) from a walk ashore on the ice.  I went over with Ebierbing who drew after him a lot of Muk-tuk ("Black Skin") wh. he, as well as all the other Innuits, is securing as fast as he can for Winter use.  Found Tuk-oo-li-too well & the little one nearly so.  T. expressed her sorrow that I was thus sadly disappointed in not being able to proceed home as I was expecting.  While there, I asked her if she would spare me half the matches & the same of the hand-soap wh. I gave her a few days since as presents on the eve of departure for the States!  She replied: 'Certainly - & more if you (I) need'.  I told her if there was yet a possibility of our going this season, then I should not need them but if not, then I would be glad to have half.
She said it made her happy for me thus to ask her as she should do all she could for me through the Winter if I had to stay here.  Ebierbing, on my asking him if he would try & trade among his friend Innuits for some Took-too furs for me a suit for this Winter, answered in the affirmative.  I told him to attend to it this P.M. as the Innuits would begin to make up their dresses soon, & it might be difficult then to get any for me.  Ebierbing generously offered to let me have back the 2 fine took-too skins wh. I gave him & his nooliana on return from my expedition trip to the Head of Frobisher Bay.  I told him that he & Tukoolitoo needed them & that I would get others.  I did not introduce the subject of making my Home with them a portion of this Winter as foreshadowed in the few lines at the top of this & bottom of preceeding pages as I purposed while there to defer the subject to another time.  Every step I took on the ice made it [[space] as tho' about letting me down, though now over 4 inches thick.  Its great elasticity in bending & returning to its position as one walks along, is truly remarkable.  Such a walk at first is really a fearful one, but one after a while gets confidence, pursuing his course as tried & tested as tho' on [[underlined]] terra firma. [[/underlined]]