When two parties of these Indians chance to meet, their mode of salutation is rather singular, and quite different from all European practices. When about twenty or thirty yards distant from each other, they make a full halt; and sit or lie down upon the ground, without speaking, for some minutes. At length the oldest on one side breaks silence, by relating to the other party all the misfortunes which have befallen him or his companions, since they had last seen or heard of each other, and also all the deaths or calamities of any of their countrymen, as far as may have come to his knowledge. A similar communication is made in reply; and, should any of the two companies be nearly affected by any of the bad news announced, they begin to sob and cry, in which all the rest unite with the utmost vehemence. They then advance by degrees, and mix together, the two sexes, however, always associating separately. The pipes are passed freely, if any tobacco can be found among them ; conversation becomes general ; the good news circulate ; cheerfulness appears on eve!y countenance; and small presents of provisions, ammuni tion, or other articles, are made, sometimes as gifts, but more frequently as speculations, to draw forth a greater present in return. Their principal amusements are, shoot ing at a mark with the bow and arrow ; playing a game resembling that of quoits, in which they make use of short clubs sharpened at one end ; or shifting a button, or small bit of wood from hand to hand, as in" which hand will you take ?" in which the player, whenever he guesses rightly, receives a counter or chip of wood from his antagonist, and he who first gains all the sticks, is winner of the stake, which is usually an arrow, or a single load of powder and shot, or something of inconsiderable value. At times they amuse themselves with (lancing, which is always perform ed during the night ; but in which they have nothing pecu liar to their own nation, and always imitate the songs and dances of the Southern tribes, or more commonly of the Dog-ribbed Indians. 'These dances are very simple, and are performed by three or four persons at a time, who stand up naked, or nearly so, close to the musician ; and, with their hands close upon the breast, their heads inclin ing a little forwards, and their bodies kept quite stiff, lift their feet alternately in quick succession, and as high as possible. The music is produced by a drum or tabor, and sometimes a rattle made of hide, shaped like an oil-flask, and filled with pebbles or small shot. These in struments are accompanied with the voice, repeating in a monotonous kind of tune, the words hee, hee, bee, ho, ho, ho, ST.c. The women are never allowed to join in these diver sions, but sometimes dance by themselves, out of doors, to the music which serves the men within the tent. Their mode of dancing has still less meaning and motion than that of the men ; and is performed-by a number of them crowding close together in a straight line, shuffling them selves a little from right to left and back again on the same ground, without lifting their feet ; and making, when the music stops, a kind of awkward curtsey, with a shrill cry of Few of the Northern Indians live to a great age ; and the extreme fatigues which they undergo from their youth, in procuring their subsistence, is supposed to have no small effect in shortening their lives. Their most fatal disorders are fluxes and consumptions, which carry off great numbers of both sexes and of all ages. But the most prevalent diseases is, a kind of scurvy the worst stage of the itch. It is seldom known to prove fatal, unless when conjoined with some internal affection ; but it is extremely troublesome and obstinate, resisting all the medicines which have yet been applied at the Com pany's factories ; and, when left to the power of nature., as is always the case among the natives, seldom removed in less than twelve or eighteen months. They make no use, indeed, of medicine, either for external or internal diseases, and attempt to cure 'them solely by charms. The modes most commonly employed are, sucking the part affected, blowing and singing to it, laughing, spitting, and uttering a multitude of unmeaning sounds and vocables. In the case of some internal complaints, such as colic, strangury, &c. the operator frequently blows into the anus or the adjacent parts, whatever be the sex of the patient, and continues the process as long and as violently as his lungs can act. The consequence of such an accumulation of is not unusually precisely the same as the effect of a clyster ; and the reaction is sometimes so sudden, as to lodge the contents full in the face of the doctor ; a scene however ludicrous to Europeans, never discom poses the gravity of any of the Indian parties or spec tators. The medical practitioners are a class of con jurors, who no doubt impose upon the credulity of their countrymen, but who seem to have themselves a real be lief in the efficacy of some of their operations. In cases of great danger, besides the usual modes of cure, they pretend to appease the power of death, and to procure a respite fur the sufferer, by swallowing hatchets, ice-chisels, broad-bayonets, knives, &c. ; and these feats they are de scribed as performing, or rather appearing to perform, with wonderful dexterity. Some of their exertions are sufficiently real and laborious, as particularly described in a case witnessed by Mr Hearne. Alter one of them had performed the feat of swallowing a long board, he took with him other five men and an old woman into the house where the patient lay ; and, having stripped themselves completely naked, began to suck, blow, sing, and dance around the sick man, " continuing so to do for three days and four nights, without taking the least rest or refresh ment, not even so much as a drop of water. When these poor deluding and deluded people came out of the con juring-house, their mouths were so parched with thirst, as to be quite black, and their throats so sore, that they were scarcely able to articulate a single word, except those that stand for yes and no in their language. After so long an abstinence, they were careful not to eat or drink too much at one time, particularly for the first day ; and, indeed, some of them, to appearance, were almost as bad as the poor man they had been endeavouring to relieve. But great part of this was feigned ; for they lay on their backs with their eyes fixed as if in the agonies of death, and were treated like young children. One person sat con stantly by them, moistening their mouths with fat, and now and then giving them a drop of water. At other times, a small bit of meat was put into their mouths, or a pipe held for them to smoke. This farce only lasted for the first day ; after which they seemed to be perfectly well, except the hoarseness, which continued for a considerable time afterwards." These conjurors profess to accomplish their cures by the aid of certain spirits or fairies, with whom they pretend to converse, and whom they often de scribe as appearing to them under the shapes of beasts, birds, clouds, &c. They are supposed to be equally able, by means of those supernatural allies, to take away as well as to prolong any one's life ; and when they chose to threaten such a malign influence to any individual or family, the imaginations of their victims are so possessed by the conviction of their power, that the consequence is affirmed to have often proved fatal, without any apparent molestation being offend to the objects of their vengeance.
Indeed, when any of their principal people die, their death, in whatever way it has taken place, is usually ascribed to sonic conjuring influence, either of their own countrymen, or of the Esquimaux, or of the Southern tribes. They never bury their dead, but always leave the bodies on the spot where they expire. They are understood to be gene rally devoured by beasts and birds of prey ; and for this reason these Indians will not eat the flesh of foxes, wolves, ravens, &c. unless they be pressed by absolute necessity. Though thus neglectful of the mortal remains of their friends, they arc deeply affected with grief for their loss ; and express their sorrow by tearing off their clothes, and wandering about naked, till their neighbours or relatives come to their relief. After the death of a father, mother, husband, wife, son, or brother, they mourn for the space of a whole year, indicating their affliction, not by any par ticular dress, but by cutting off their hair, and crying almost perpetually. But the greatest calamity that can befal any of these Indians is old age. When any one is incapable to labour, he is treated, even by his own chil dren, with the greatest neglect and disrespect, being always last served at meals, and then only with the the victuals ; being clothed in the clumsiest manner, with what the rest of the family despise to wear ; and finally, when no longer able to walk, deliberately abandoned to perish of want. This practice is so general, that one half at least of the aged people of both sexes are supposed to (lie in this miserable manner. The absolute necessity of moving from place to place in quest of subsistence, and the 'want of any easy mode of conveyance among them, may be con sidered as the original causes of this unnatural custom.
The notions which these Indians entertain in religion are so extremely vague and limited, that they may almost be said to have no ideas at all on that subject. With re gard to the origin of the world, they have a tradition, that the first person on earth was a woman, who, after being some time alone, found an animal like a dog, which fol lowed her to the cave where she lived, and transforming itself during the night-time into the shape of a handsome youth, rendered her the mother of a family. Some time afterwards, a person, of such gigantic stature as to reach the clouds with his head, came to level the land, which had been hitherto a confused heap, and this he effected merely with the help of his walking stick, marking out, at the same time, the lakes, ponds, and rivers. He then took the dog, and, tearing it in pieces, threw its intestines into the waters, commanding them to become fishes ; dis persed its flesh over the land, with a similar charge to form the different kinds of beasts; threw the pieces of its skin in the air, to give origin to the feathered tribes ; com manded the woman and her offspring to kill, eat, and never spare, as he had charged these creatures to multiply for her use ; and then returning to the place whence he came, has never been heard of since. They believe in the exist ence of several kinds of spirits, whom they suppose to in habit the different elements, and to whose influence they attribute every change in their lot, whether favourable or adverse. They have no fixed creed, however, in these matters ; but are continually receiving new fables from their conjurors, who profess to receive intimations in dreams from these invisible beings. They have no prac tical religious observances whatever, except perhaps speak ing with reverence of certain beasts and birds, in which they imagine these spirits to reside. But they restrict the influence of these beings upon their welfare entirely to the present life, and have no idea Whatever of a future state.* They have indeed a multitude of superstitious customs, sonic of which have already been mentioned, respecting success in hunting, fishing, Ste. but which seem to partake more of the nature of civil than religious institutions. One of the most remarkable of these is that which they observ ed after having put to death any of their enemies in war. All those who have shed blood are, for many months after wards, in a state of uncleanness, and obliged to perform a number of strange ceremonies. They arc prohibited from cooking any kind of victuals for themselves or others ; re quired to paint their faces with red earth before every meal ; restricted to the use of their own pipe and dish ; forbidden to eat various parts of animals, particularly the head, entrails, and blood ; precluded from having their food prepared in water, so that, if they could not have it broiled on the fire or dried in the sun, they must eat it in a raw state ; and finally denied the privilege of saluting any of their wives and children. When the appointed time is expired, they kindle a fire at some distance from the tents, into which they throw all their ornaments, pipe stems, and dishes ; and then partake of a feast, consisting of all those articles of food which they had been prohibited from using.
The Northern Indians are an indolent, improvident race ; and are frequently in danger of starving from mere want of exertion and foresight, especially in their trading excursions to Prince of Wales Fort, the only one of the factories which they frequent. They are seldom gbilty of stealing from one another, hut are ready to pick up every kind of iron work which falls in their way at the Com pany's settlements. They excel in all the arts of defraud ing and overreaching, and especially in playing the part of feigned want and distress. They are continually pleading poverty even among themselves ; and, at the factory, they may be said to practise begging more than traffic. They are generally of a morose and covetous disposition, and remarkably deficient in gratitude. They are by no means a warlike people, and are not inclined to acts of cruelty, except towards their enemies the Esquimaux. Whatever losses or injuries they may sustain from one another, their revenge rarely extends beyond a wrestling match with the Offender. Murder is almost unknown among them ; and the perpetrator of such a crime would be treated by uni versal consent as an outlaw from their tribe. At the same time, they testify little humanity to the sufferings of others beyond the circle of their immediate relatives; and are known rather to ridicule, in the most unfeeling manner, the most afflicting cases of distress. They are not at all addicted to the use of spirituous liquors ; and though some, who have intercourse with the factory) may learn to take them freely enough, when given gratis, they never think of them as an article of purchase. They are thus always sober, and are guilty of no greater rioting than what con sists in abusive language. They arc apt to become inso lent and uncomplying when treated with indulgence ; but nevertheless are by far the mildest tribe of Indians to be found on the borders of Hudson's Bay.