shoals forsake her, and resort with all speed to their wonted shelves, where the Greenlanders catch them in great plenty. When this great business is done, the angekkok with his Torngak proud of success make the best of their way home again, where they find the road smooth, and easy to what it was before. * * * * * As to the souls of the dead, in their travel to this happy country, they meet with a sharp pointed stone, upon which the angekkuts tell them they must slide or glide down upon their breech, as there is no other passage to get through, and this stone is besmeared with blood; perhaps, by this mystical or hieroglyphical image, they thereby signify the adversities and tribulations those have to struggle with, who desire to attain to happiness. CHAP. XIX. _The Greenlanders’ Astronomy, or their Thoughts concerning the Sun, Moon, Stars, and Planets._ The notions the Greenlanders have of the origin of heavenly lights, as Sun, Moon, and Stars, are very nonsensical; in that they pretend that they have formerly been so many of their ancestors, who on different accounts were lifted up to Heaven and became such glorious celestial bodies. Their silly stories concerning this matter have been related in the continuation to the Greenland Memoirs, or relations, but as this book very likely may not come to the hands of every body, I shall shortly remember some of them here. The Moon, as they will have it, has been a young man, called Anningait, or Anningasina; whose sister was the Sun, named Malina, or Ajut (by which latter name they call any handsome woman, for whom they have a value, Ajuna.) The reason (why these two were taken up into Heaven) they give, is this: there were once a number of young men and women assembled to play together in a house made of snow (according to their custom in the winter season), when the Moon or Anningait, who was deeply in love with his sister, who assisted at this assembly, was used every night to put out the light, that he might caress her undiscovered; but she not liking these stolen caresses, once blackened her hands with soot, that she might mark the hands, face, and clothes of her unknown lover, who in the dark made addresses to her, and by that discover who he was: hence, they say, come the spots that are observed in the moon; for as he wore a coat of a fine white rein deer skin, it was all over besmeared with soot; hereupon Malina, or the Sun, went out to light a bit of moss; Anningait, or the Moon, did the same, but the flame of his moss was extinguished; this makes the Moon look like a fiery coal, and not shine so bright as the Sun. The Moon then run after the Sun round about the house to catch her; but she, to get rid of him, flew up into the air, and the Moon pursuing her, did likewise; and thus they still continue to pursue one another, though the Sun’s career is much above that of the Moon[42].