Their religion too appears to have received no more improvement than
their morals; from their neighbourhood to nominal Christians their
creed remained much the same. They believed that Torngak, under the
figure of an old man, dwelt in the waters, and had the rule over
whales and seals, and that a female demon, Supperguksoak, under the
form of an old woman, resided in the interior, and reigned over the
land animals. But the Angekoks had assumed a secular power, which they
did not possess in Greenland, and exercised at once the office of
priest and a chief, of a sorcerer, a thief, and a murderer. Of this
several examples will be found in the subsequent narrative, as well as
instances of their ridiculous incantations: the females, in some
cases, showed the authority and influence of their husbands. Their
notions of futurity were gross and sensual, the highest enjoyment of
the soul after death, being made to consist in successful hunting and
gluttony; the sorest punishment, in poverty and hunger.
The Esquimaux on the east coast of Labrador, may be divided into two
sections: those in the south, who seldom come farther than
Kangertuksoak, about twenty miles north of Okkak, which lies 57 deg., 20
m. N.L.; and those of the north, who seldom come farther south than
Nachrack 59 deg. --m. Saeglak lies between, and in winter is visited by
both in their sledges. Those in the north still retain the original
native furniture, wooden bowls, and whale-bone water buckets, large
and small lamps and kettles of bastard marble, and are more
unvitiated, therefore more to be depended upon than the others. They
of the south have obtained European pots and kettles of iron,
hatchets, saws, knives and gimlets, woollen cloths, sewing needles,
and various other utensils of iron; they are more treacherous, and
less to be trusted in their dealings.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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