[The story of a scheming white
man among the strange people
who live on the rim of the Arctic
sea]
Thomas Stevens's
veracity may have been indeterminate
as X,
and his imagination the imagination
of ordinary men increased to
the nth power, but this, at least,
must be said: never did he deliver
himself of word nor deed that
could be branded as a lie outright.
. . He may have played with probability,
and verged on the extremest edge
of possibility, but in his tales
the machinery never creaked.
That he knew the Northland like
a book, not a soul can deny.
That he was a great traveller,
and had set foot on countless
unknown trails, many evidences
affirm. Outside of my own personal
knowledge, I knew men that had
met him everywhere, but principally
on the confines of Nowhere. There
was Johnson, the ex-Hudson Bay
Company factor, who had housed
him in a Labrador factory until
his dogs rested up a bit, and
he was able to strike out again.
There was McMahon, agent for
the Alaska Commercial Company,
who had run across him in Dutch
Harbour, and later on, among
the outlying islands of the Aleutian
group. It was indisputable that
he had guided one of the earlier
United States surveys, and history
states positively that in a similar
capacity he served the Western
Union when it attempted to put
through its trans-Alaskan and
Siberian telegraph to Europe.
Further, there was Joe Lamson,
the whaling captain, who, when
ice-bound off the mouth of the
Mackenzie, had had him come aboard
after tobacco. This last touch
proves Thomas Stevens's identity
conclusively. His quest for tobacco
was perennial and untiring. Ere
we became fairly acquainted,
I learned to greet him with one
hand, and pass the pouch with
the other. But the night I met
him in John O'Brien's Dawson
saloon, his head was wreathed
in a nimbus of fifty-cent cigar
smoke, and instead of my pouch
he demanded my sack. We were
standing by a faro table, and
forthwith he tossed it upon the "high
card." "Fifty," he said, and
the game-keeper nodded. The "high
card" turned, and he handed back
my sack, called for a "tab," and
drew me over to the scales, where
the weigher nonchalantly cashed
him out fifty dollars in dust.
"And now we'll drink," he said;
and later, at the bar, when he
lowered his glass: "Reminds me
of a little brew I had up Tattarat
way. No, you have no knowledge
of the place, nor is it down
on the charts. But it's up by
the rim of the Arctic Sea, not
so many hundred miles from the
American line, and all of half
a thousand God-forsaken souls
live there, giving and taking
in marriage, and starving and
dying in-between-whiles. Explorers
have overlooked them, and you
will not find them in the census
of 1890. A whale- ship was pinched
there once, but the men, who
had made shore over the ice,
pulled out for the south and
were never heard of.
"But it was a great brew we
had, Moosu and I," he added a
moment later, with just the slightest
suspicion of a sigh.
I knew there were big deeds
and wild doings behind that sigh,
so I haled him into a corner,
between a roulette outfit and
a poker layout, and waited for
his tongue to thaw.
"Had one objection to Moosu," he
began, cocking his head meditatively--"one
objection, and only one. He was
an Indian from over on the edge
of the Chippewyan country, but
the trouble was, he'd picked
up a smattering of the Scriptures.
Been campmate a season with a
renegade French Canadian who'd
studied for the church. Moosu'd
never seen applied Christianity,
and his head was crammed with
miracles, battles, and dispensations,
and what not he didn't understand.
Otherwise he was a good sort,
and a handy man on trail or over
a fire.
"We'd had a
hard time together and were
badly knocked out when
we plumped upon Tattarat. Lost
outfits and dogs crossing a divide
in a fall blizzard, and our bellies
clove to our backs and our clothes
were in rags when we crawled
into the village. They weren't
much surprised at seeing us--because
of the whalemen--and gave us
the meanest shack in the village
to live in, and the worst of
their leavings to live on. What
struck me at the time as strange
was that they left us strictly
alone. But Moosu explained it.
"'Shaman SICK
TUMTUM,' he said, meaning the
shaman, or medicine
man, was jealous, and had advised
the people to have nothing to
do with us. From the little he'd
seen of the whalemen, he'd learned
that mine was a stronger race,
and a wiser; so he'd only behaved
as shamans have always behaved
the world over. And before I
get done, you'll see how near
right he was.
"'These people
have a law,' said Mosu: 'whoso
eats of meat
must hunt. We be awkward, you
and I, O master, in the weapons
of this country; nor can we string
bows nor fling spears after the
manner approved. Wherefore the
shaman and Tummasook, who is
chief, have put their heads together,
and it has been decreed that
we work with the women and children
in dragging in the meat and tending
the wants of the hunters.'
"'And this
is very wrong,' I made to answer;
'for we be
better men, Moosu, than these
people who walk in darkness.
Further, we should rest and grow
strong, for the way south is
long, and on that trail the weak
cannot prosper.'"
"'But we have nothing,' he
objected, looking about him at
the rotten timbers of the igloo,
the stench of the ancient walrus
meat that had been our supper
disgusting his nostrils. 'And
on this fare we cannot thrive.
We have nothing save the bottle
of "pain- killer," which will
not fill emptiness, so we must
bend to the yoke of the unbeliever
and become hewers of wood and
drawers of water. And there be
good things in this place, the
which we may not have. Ah, master,
never has my nose lied to me,
and I have followed it to secret
caches and among the fur-bales
of the igloos. Good provender
did these people extort from
the poor whalemen, and this provender
has wandered into few hands.
The woman Ipsukuk, who dwelleth
in the far end of the village
next she igloo of the chief,
possesseth much flour and sugar,
and even have my eyes told me
of molasses smeared on her face.
And in the igloo of Tummasook,
the chief, there be tea--have
I not seen the old pig guzzling?
And the shaman owneth a caddy
of "Star" and two buckets of
prime smoking. And what have
we? Nothing! Nothing!'
"But I was
stunned by the word he brought
of the tobacco, and
made no answer.
"And Moosu,
what of his own desire, broke
silence: 'And there
be Tukeliketa, daughter of a
big hunter and wealthy man. A
likely girl. Indeed, a very nice
girl.'
"I figured
hard during the night while
Moosu snored, for
I could not bear the thought
of the tobacco so near which
I could not smoke. True, as he
had said, we had nothing. But
the way became clear to me, and
in the morning I said to him:
'Go thou cunningly abroad, after
thy fashion, and procure me some
sort of bone, crooked like a
goose-neck, and hollow. Also,
walk humbly, but have eyes awake
to the lay of pots and pans and
cooking contrivances. And remember,
mine is the white man's wisdom,
and do what I have bid you, with
sureness and despatch.'
"While he was
away I placed the whale-oil
cooking lamp in
the middle of the igloo, and
moved the mangy sleeping furs
back that I might have room.
Then I took apart his gun and
put the barrel by handy, and
afterwards braided many wicks
from the cotton that the women
gather wild in the summer. When
he came back, it was with the
bone I had commanded, and with
news that in the igloo of Tummasook
there was a five-gallon kerosene
can and a big copper kettle.
So I said he had done well and
we would tarry through the day.
And when midnight was near I
made harangue to him.
"'This chief, this Tummasook,
hath a copper kettle, likewise
a kerosene can.' I put a rock,
smooth and wave-washed, in Moosu's
hand. 'The camp is hushed and
the stars are winking. Go thou,
creep into the chief's igloo
softly, and smite him thus upon
the belly, and hard. And let
the meat and good grub of the
days to come put strength into
thine arm. There will be uproar
and outcry, and the village will
come hot afoot. But be thou unafraid.
Veil thy movements and lose thy
form in the obscurity of the
night and the confusion of men.
And when the woman Ipsukuk is
anigh thee,-- she who smeareth
her face with molasses,--do thou
smite her likewise, and whosoever
else that possesseth flour and
cometh to thy hand. Then do thou
lift thy voice in pain and double
up with clasped hands, and make
outcry in token that thou, too,
hast felt the visitation of the
night. And in this way shall
we achieve honour and great possessions,
and the caddy of "Star" and the
prime smoking, and thy Tukeliketa,
who is a likely maiden.'
"When he had
departed on this errand, I
bided patiently in
the shack, and the tobacco seemed
very near. Then there was a cry
of affright in the night, that
became an uproar and assailed
the sky. I seized the 'pain-killer'
and ran forth. There was much
noise, and a wailing among the
women, and fear sat heavily on
all. Tummasook and the woman
Ipsukuk rolled on the ground
in pain, and with them there
were divers others, also Moosu.
I thrust aside those that cluttered
the way of my feet, and put the
mouth of the bottle to Moosu's
lips. And straightway he became
well and ceased his howling.
Whereat there was a great clamour
for the bottle from the others
so stricken. But I made harangue,
and ere they tasted and were
made well I had mulcted Tummasook
of his copper kettle and kerosene
can, and the woman Ipsukuk of
her sugar and molasses, and the
other sick ones of goodly measures
of flour. The shaman glowered
wickedly at the people around
my knees, though he poorly concealed
the wonder that lay beneath.
But I held my head high, and
Moosu groaned beneath the loot
as he followed my heels to the
shack.
"There I set
to work. In Tummasook's copper
kettle I mixed three quarts
of wheat flour with five of molasses,
and to this I added of water
twenty quarts. Then I placed
the kettle near the lamp, that
it might sour in the warmth and
grow strong. Moosu understood,
and said my wisdom passed understanding
and was greater than Solomon's,
who he had heard was a wise man
of old time. The kerosene can
I set over the lamp, and to its
nose I affixed a snout, and into
the snout the bone that was like
a gooseneck. I sent Moosu without
to pound ice, while I connected
the barrel of his gun with the
gooseneck, and midway on the
barrel I piled the ice he had
pounded. And at the far end of
the gun-barrel, beyond the pan
of ice, I placed a small iron
pot. When the brew was strong
enough (and it was two days ere
it could stand on its own legs),
I filled the kerosene can with
it, and lighted the wicks I had
braided.
"Now that all
was ready, I spoke to Moosu.
'Go forth,' I
said, 'to the chief men of the
village, and give them greeting,
and bid them come into my igloo
and sleep the night away with
me and the gods.'
"The brew was
singing merrily when they began
shoving aside
the skin flap and crawling in,
and I was heaping cracked ice
on the gun-barrel. Out of the
priming hole at the far end,
drip, drip, drip into the iron
pot fell the liquor--HOOCH, you
know. But they'd never seen the
like, and giggled nervously when
I made harangue about its virtues.
As I talked I noted the jealousy
in the shaman's eye, so when
I had done, I placed him side
by side with Tummasook and the
woman Ipsukuk. Then I gave them
to drink, and their eyes watered
and their stomachs warmed, till
from being afraid they reached
greedily for more; and when I
had them well started, I turned
to the others. Tummasook made
a brag about how he had once
killed a polar bear, and in the
vigour of his pantomime nearly
slew his mother's brother. But
nobody heeded. The woman Ipsukuk
fell to weeping for a son lost
long years agone in the ice,
and the shaman made incantation
and prophecy. So it went, and
before morning they were all
on the floor, sleeping soundly
with the gods.
"The story
tells itself, does it not?
The news of the magic
potion spread. It was too marvellous
for utterance. Tongues could
tell but a tithe of the miracles
it performed. It eased pain,
gave surcease to sorrow, brought
back old memories, dead faces,
and forgotten dreams. It was
a fire that ate through all the
blood, and, burning, burned not.
It stoutened the heart, stiffened
the back, and made men more than
men. It revealed the future,
and gave visions and prophecy.
It brimmed with wisdom and unfolded
secrets. There was no end of
the things it could do, and soon
there was a clamouring on all
hands to sleep with the gods.
They brought their warmest furs,
their strongest dogs, their best
meats; but I sold the hooch with
discretion, and only those were
favoured that brought flour and
molasses and sugar. And such
stores poured in that I set Moosu
to build a cache to hold them,
for there was soon no space in
the igloo. Ere three days had
passed Tummasook had gone bankrupt.
The shaman, who was never more
than half drunk after the first
night, watched me closely and
hung on for the better part of
the week. But before ten days
were gone, even the woman Ipsukuk
exhausted her provisions, and
went home weak and tottery.
"But Moosu
complained. 'O master,' he
said, 'we have laid by great
wealth in molasses and sugar
and flour, but our shack is yet
mean, our clothes thin, and our
sleeping furs mangy. There is
a call of the belly for meat
the stench of which offends not
the stars, and for tea such as
Tummasook guzzles, and there
is a great yearning for the tobacco
of Neewak, who is shaman and
who plans to destroy us. I have
flour until I am sick, and sugar
and molasses without stint, yet
is the heart of Moosu sore and
his bed empty.'
"'Peace!' I answered, 'thou
art weak of understanding and
a fool. Walk softly and wait,
and we will grasp it all. But
grasp now, and we grasp little,
and in the end it will be nothing.
Thou art a child in the way of
the white man's wisdom. Hold
thy tongue and watch, and I will
show you the way my brothers
do overseas, and, so doing, gather
to themselves the riches of the
earth. It is what is called "business," and
what dost thou know about business?'
"But the next
day he came in breathless.
'O master, a strange
thing happeneth in the igloo
of Neewak, the shaman; wherefore
we are lost, and we have neither
worn the warm furs nor tasted
the good tobacco, what of your
madness for the molasses and
flour. Go thou and witness whilst
I watch by the brew.'
"So I went
to the igloo of Neewak. And
behold, he had made
his own still, fashioned cunningly
after mine. And as he beheld
me he could ill conceal his triumph.
For he was a man of parts, and
his sleep with the gods when
in my igloo had not been sound.
"But I was
not disturbed, for I knew what
I knew, and when
I returned to my own igloo, I
descanted to Moosu, and said:
'Happily the property right obtains
amongst this people, who otherwise
have been blessed with but few
of the institutions of men. And
because of this respect for property
shall you and I wax fat, and,
further, we shall introduce amongst
them new institutions that other
peoples have worked out through
great travail and suffering.'
"But Moosu
understood dimly, till the
shaman came forth, with
eyes flashing and a threatening
note in his voice, and demanded
to trade with me. 'For look you,'
he cried, 'there be of flour
and molasses none in all the
village. The like have you gathered
with a shrewd hand from my people,
who have slept with your gods
and who now have nothing save
large heads, and weak knees,
and a thirst for cold water that
they cannot quench. This is not
good, and my voice has power
among them; so it were well that
we trade, you and I, even as
you have traded with them, for
molasses and flour.'
"And I made answer: 'This be
good talk, and wisdom abideth
in thy mouth. We will trade.
For this much of flour and molasses
givest thou me the caddy of "Star" and
the two buckets of smoking.'
"And Moosu
groaned, and when the trade
was made and the shaman
departed, he upbraided me: 'Now,
because of thy madness are we,
indeed, lost! Neewak maketh hooch
on his own account, and when
the time is ripe, he will command
the people to drink of no hooch
but his hooch. And in this way
are we undone, and our goods
worthless, and our igloo mean,
and the bed of Moosu cold and
empty!'
"And I answered:
'By the body of the wolf, say
I, thou art
a fool, and thy father before
thee, and thy children after
thee, down to the last generation.
Thy wisdom is worse than no wisdom
and thine eyes blinded to business,
of which I have spoken and whereof
thou knowest nothing. Go, thou
son of a thousand fools, and
drink of the hooch that Neewak
brews in his igloo, and thank
thy gods that thou hast a white
man's wisdom to make soft the
bed thou liest in. Go! and when
thou hast drunken, return with
the taste still on thy lips,
that I may know.'
"And two days
after, Neewak sent greeting
and invitation
to his igloo. Moosu went, but
I sat alone, with the song of
the still in my ears, and the
air thick with the shaman's tobacco;
for trade was slack that night,
and no one dropped in but Angeit,
a young hunter that had faith
in me. Later, Moosu came back,
his speech thick with chuckling
and his eyes wrinkling with laughter.
"'Thou art
a great man,' he said. 'Thou
art a great man,
O master, and because of thy
greatness thou wilt not condemn
Moosu, thy servant, who ofttimes
doubts and cannot be made to
understand.'
"'And wherefore
now?' I demanded. 'Hast thou
drunk overmuch? And
are they sleeping sound in the
igloo of Neewak, the shaman?'
"'Nay, they
are angered and sore of body,
and Chief Tummasook
has thrust his thumbs in the
throat of Neewak, and sworn by
the bones of his ancestors to
look upon his face no more. For
behold! I went to the igloo,
and the brew simmered and bubbled,
and the steam journeyed through
the gooseneck even as thy steam,
and even as thine it became water
where it met the ice, and dropped
into the pot at the far end.
And Neewak gave us to drink,
and lo, it was not like thine,
for there was no bite to the
tongue nor tingling to the eyeballs,
and of a truth it was water.
So we drank, and we drank overmuch;
yet did we sit with cold hearts
and solemn. And Neewak was perplexed
and a cloud came on his brow.
And he took Tummasook and Ipsukuk
alone of all the company and
set them apart, and bade them
drink and drink and drink. And
they drank and drank and drank,
and yet sat solemn and cold,
till Tummasook arose in wrath
and demanded back the furs and
the tea he had paid. And Ipsukuk
raised her voice, thin and angry.
And the company demanded back
what they had given, and there
was a great commotion.'
"'Does the
son of a dog deem me a whale?'
demanded Tummasook,
shoving back the skin flap and
standing erect, his face black
and his brows angry. 'Wherefore
I am filled, like a fish-bladder,
to bursting, till I can scarce
walk, what of the weight within
me. Lalah! I have drunken as
never before, yet are my eyes
clear, my knees strong, my hand
steady.'
"'The shaman
cannot send us to sleep with
the gods,' the
people complained, stringing
in and joining us, 'and only
in thy igloo may the thing be
done.'
"So I laughed
to myself as I passed the hooch
around and
the guests made merry. For in
the flour I had traded to Neewak
I had mixed much soda that I
had got from the woman Ipsukuk.
So how could his brew ferment
when the soda kept it sweet?
Or his hooch be hooch when it
would not sour?
"After that
our wealth flowed in without
let or hindrance.
Furs we had without number, and
the fancy-work of the women,
all of the chief's tea, and no
end of meat. One day Moosu retold
for my benefit, and sadly mangled,
the story of Joseph in Egypt,
but from it I got an idea, and
soon I had half the tribe at
work building me great meat caches.
And of all they hunted I got
the lion's share and stored it
away. Nor was Moosu idle. He
made himself a pack of cards
from birch bark, and taught Neewak
the way to play seven-up. He
also inveigled the father of
Tukeliketa into the game. And
one day he married the maiden,
and the next day he moved into
the shaman's house, which was
the finest in the village. The
fall of Neewak was complete,
for he lost all his possessions,
his walrus- hide drums, his incantation
tools--everything. And in the
end he became a hewer of wood
and drawer of water at the beck
and call of Moosu. And Moosu--he
set himself up as shaman, or
high priest, and out of his garbled
Scripture created new gods and
made incantation before strange
altars.
"And I was
well pleased, for I thought
it good that church
and state go hand in hand, and
I had certain plans of my own
concerning the state. Events
were shaping as I had foreseen.
Good temper and smiling faces
had vanished from the village.
The people were morose and sullen.
There were quarrels and fighting,
and things were in an uproar
night and day. Moosu's cards
were duplicated and the hunters
fell to gambling among themselves.
Tummasook beat his wife horribly,
and his mother's brother objected
and smote him with a tusk of
walrus till he cried aloud in
the night and was shamed before
the people. Also, amid such diversions
no hunting was done, and famine
fell upon the land. The nights
were long and dark, and without
meat no hooch could be bought;
so they murmured against the
chief. This I had played for,
and when they were well and hungry,
I summoned the whole village,
made a great harangue, posed
as patriarch, and fed the famishing.
Moosu made harangue likewise,
and because of this and the thing
I had done I was made chief.
Moosu, who had the ear of God
and decreed his judgments, anointed
me with whale blubber, and right
blubberly he did it, not understanding
the ceremony. And between us
we interpreted to the people
the new theory of the divine
right of kings. There was hooch
galore, and meat and feastings,
and they took kindly to the new
order.
"So you see,
O man, I have sat in the high
places, and worn
the purple, and ruled populations.
And I might yet be a king had
the tobacco held out, or had
Moosu been more fool and less
knave. For he cast eyes upon
Esanetuk, eldest daughter to
Tummasook, and I objected.
"'O brother,'
he explained, 'thou hast seen
fit to speak
of introducing new institutions
amongst this people, and I have
listened to thy words and gained
wisdom thereby. Thou rulest by
the God-given right, and by the
God-given right I marry.'
"I noted that
he 'brothered' me, and was
angry and put my
foot down. But he fell back upon
the people and made incantations
for three days, in which all
hands joined; and then, speaking
with the voice of God, he decreed
polygamy by divine fiat. But
he was shrewd, for he limited
the number of wives by a property
qualification, and because of
which he, above all men, was
favoured by his wealth. Nor could
I fail to admire, though it was
plain that power had turned his
head, and he would not be satisfied
till all the power and all the
wealth rested in his own hands.
So he became swollen with pride,
forgot it was I that had placed
him there, and made preparations
to destroy me.
"But it was
interesting, for the beggar
was working out in
his own way an evolution of primitive
society. Now I, by virtue of
the hooch monopoly, drew a revenue
in which I no longer permitted
him to share. So he meditated
for a while and evolved a system
of ecclesiastical taxation. He
laid tithes upon the people,
harangued about fat firstlings
and such things, and twisted
whatever twisted texts he had
ever heard to serve his purpose.
Even this I bore in silence,
but when he instituted what may
be likened to a graduated income-tax,
I rebelled, and blindly, for
this was what he worked for.
Thereat, he appealed to the people,
and they, envious of my great
wealth and well taxed themselves,
upheld him. 'Why should we pay,'
they asked, 'and not you? Does
not the voice of God speak through
the lips of Moosu, the shaman?'
So I yielded. But at the same
time I raised the price of hooch,
and lo, he was not a whit behind
me in raising my taxes.
"Then there
was open war. I made a play
for Neewak and Tummasook,
because of the traditionary rights
they possessed; but Moosu won
out by creating a priesthood
and giving them both high office.
The problem of authority presented
itself to him, and he worked
it out as it has often been worked
before. There was my mistake.
I should have been made shaman,
and he chief; but I saw it too
late, and in the clash of spiritual
and temporal power I was bound
to be worsted. A great controversy
waged, but it quickly became
one- sided. The people remembered
that he had anointed me, and
it was clear to them that the
source of my authority lay, not
in me, but in Moosu. Only a few
faithful ones clung to me, chief
among whom Angeit was; while
he headed the popular party and
set whispers afloat that I had
it in mind to overthrow him and
set up my own gods, which were
most unrighteous gods. And in
this the clever rascal had anticipated
me, for it was just what I had
intended-- forsake my kingship,
you see, and fight spiritual
with spiritual. So he frightened
the people with the iniquities
of my peculiar gods--especially
the one he named 'Biz-e-Nass'--and
nipped the scheme in the bud.
"Now, it happened
that Kluktu, youngest daughter
to Tummasook,
had caught my fancy, and I likewise
hers. So I made overtures, but
the ex-chief refused bluntly--after
I had paid the purchase price--and
informed me that she was set
aside for Moosu. This was too
much, and I was half of a mind
to go to his igloo and slay him
with my naked hands; but I recollected
that the tobacco was near gone,
and went home laughing. The next
day he made incantation, and
distorted the miracle of the
loaves and fishes till it became
prophecy, and I, reading between
the lines, saw that it was aimed
at the wealth of meat stored
in my caches. The people also
read between the lines, and,
as he did not urge them to go
on the hunt, they remained at
home, and few caribou or bear
were brought in.
"But I had
plans of my own, seeing that
not only the tobacco
but the flour and molasses were
near gone. And further, I felt
it my duty to prove the white
man's wisdom and bring sore distress
to Moosu, who had waxed high-stomached,
what of the power I had given
him. So that night I went to
my meat caches and toiled mightily,
and it was noted next day that
all the dogs of the village were
lazy. No one suspected, and I
toiled thus every night, and
the dogs grew fat and fatter,
and the people lean and leaner.
They grumbled and demanded the
fulfilment of prophecy, but Moosu
restrained them, waiting for
their hunger to grow yet greater.
Nor did he dream, to the very
last, of the trick I had been
playing on the empty caches.
"When all was
ready, I sent Angeit, and the
faithful ones
whom I had fed privily, through
the village to call assembly.
And the tribe gathered on a great
space of beaten snow before my
door, with the meat caches towering
stilt-legged in the rear. Moosu
came also, standing on the inner
edge of the circle opposite me,
confident that I had some scheme
afoot, and prepared at the first
break to down me. But I arose,
giving him salutation before
all men.
"'O Moosu,
thou blessed of God,' I began,
'doubtless thou
hast wondered in that I have
called this convocation together;
and doubtless, because of my
many foolishnesses, art thou
prepared for rash sayings and
rash doings. Not so. It has been
said, that those the gods would
destroy they first make mad.
And I have been indeed mad. I
have crossed thy will, and scoffed
at thy authority, and done divers
evil and wanton things. Wherefore,
last night a vision was vouchsafed
me, and I have seen the wickedness
of my ways. And thou stoodst
forth like a shining star, with
brows aflame, and I knew in mine
own heart thy greatness. I saw
all things clearly. I knew that
thou didst command the ear of
God, and that when you spoke
he listened. And I remembered
that whatever of the good deeds
that I had done, I had done through
the grace of God, and the grace
of Moosu.
"'Yes, my children,'
I cried, turning to the people,
'whatever
right I have done, and whatever
good I have done, have been because
of the counsel of Moosu. When
I listened to him, affairs prospered;
when I closed my ears, and acted
according to my folly, things
came to folly. By his advice
it was that I laid my store of
meat, and in time of darkness
fed the famishing. By his grace
it was that I was made chief.
And what have I done with my
chiefship? Let me tell you. I
have done nothing. My head was
turned with power, and I deemed
myself greater than Moosu, and,
behold I have come to grief.
My rule has been unwise, and
the gods are angered. Lo, ye
are pinched with famine, and
the mothers are dry-breasted,
and the little babies cry through
the long nights. Nor do I, who
have hardened my heart against
Moosu, know what shall be done,
nor in what manner of way grub
shall be had.'
"At this there
was nodding and laughing, and
the people
put their heads together, and
I knew they whispered of the
loaves and fishes. I went on
hastily. 'So I was made aware
of my foolishness and of Moosu's
wisdom; of my own unfitness and
of Moosu's fitness. And because
of this, being no longer mad,
I make acknowledgment and rectify
evil. I did cast unrighteous
eyes upon Kluktu, and lo, she
was sealed to Moosu. Yet is she
mine, for did I not pay to Tummasook
the goods of purchase? But I
am well unworthy of her, and
she shall go from the igloo of
her father to the igloo of Moosu.
Can the moon shine in the sunshine?
And further, Tummasook shall
keep the goods of purchase, and
she be a free gift to Moosu,
whom God hath ordained her rightful
lord.
"'And further
yet, because I have used my
wealth unwisely,
and to oppress ye, O my children,
do I make gifts of the kerosene
can to Moosu, and the gooseneck,
and the gun-barrel, and the copper
kettle. Therefore, I can gather
to me no more possessions, and
when ye are athirst for hooch,
he will quench ye and without
robbery. For he is a great man,
and God speaketh through his
lips.
"'And yet further,
my heart is softened, and I
have repented
me of my madness. I, who am a
fool and a son of fools; I, who
am the slave of the bad god Biz-e-Nass;
I, who see thy empty bellies
and knew not wherewith to fill
them--why shall I be chief, and
sit above thee, and rule to thine
own destruction? Why should I
do this, which is not good? But
Moosu, who is shaman, and who
is wise above men, is so made
that he can rule with a soft
hand and justly. And because
of the things I have related
do I make abdication and give
my chiefship to Moosu, who alone
knoweth how ye may be fed in
this day when there be no meat
in the land.'
"At this there
was a great clapping of hands,
and the people
cried, 'KLOSHE! KLOSHE!' which
means 'good.' I had seen the
wonder-worry in Moosu's eyes;
for he could not understand,
and was fearful of my white man's
wisdom. I had met his wishes
all along the line, and even
anticipated some; and standing
there, self-shorn of all my power,
he knew the time did not favour
to stir the people against me.
"Before they
could disperse I made announcement
that while
the still went to Moosu, whatever
hooch I possessed went to the
people. Moosu tried to protest
at this, for never had we permitted
more than a handful to be drunk
at a time; but they cried, 'KLOSHE!
KLOSHE!' and made festival before
my door. And while they waxed
uproarious without, as the liquor
went to their heads, I held council
within with Angeit and the faithful
ones. I set them the tasks they
were to do, and put into their
mouths the words they were to
say. Then I slipped away to a
place back in the woods where
I had two sleds, well loaded,
with teams of dogs that were
not overfed. Spring was at hand,
you see, and there was a crust
to the snow; so it was the best
time to take the way south. Moreover,
the tobacco was gone. There I
waited, for I had nothing to
fear. Did they bestir themselves
on my trail, their dogs were
too fat, and themselves too lean,
to overtake me; also, I deemed
their bestirring would be of
an order for which I had made
due preparation.
"First came
a faithful one, running, and
after him another.
'O master,' the first cried,
breathless, 'there be great confusion
in the village, and no man knoweth
his own mind, and they be of
many minds. Everybody hath drunken
overmuch, and some be stringing
bows, and some be quarrelling
one with another. Never was there
such a trouble.'
"And the second
one: 'And I did as thou biddest,
O master,
whispering shrewd words in thirsty
ears, and raising memories of
the things that were of old time.
The woman Ipsukuk waileth her
poverty and the wealth that no
longer is hers. And Tummasook
thinketh himself once again chief,
and the people are hungry and
rage up and down.'
"And a third
one: 'And Neewak hath overthrown
the altars of
Moosu, and maketh incantation
before the time-honoured and
ancient gods. And all the people
remember the wealth that ran
down their throats, and which
they possess no more. And first,
Esanetuk, who be SICK TUMTUM,
fought with Kluktu, and there
was much noise. And next, being
daughters of the one mother,
did they fight with Tukeliketa.
And after that did they three
fall upon Moosu, like wind-squalls,
from every hand, till he ran
forth from the igloo, and the
people mocked him. For a man
who cannot command his womankind
is a fool.'
"Then came Angeit: 'Great trouble
hath befallen Moosu, O master,
for I have whispered to advantage,
till the people came to Moosu,
saying they were hungry and demanding
the fulfilment of prophecy. And
there was a loud shout of "Itlwillie!
Itlwillie!" (Meat.) So he cried
peace to his womenfolk, who were
overwrought with anger and with
hooch, and led the tribe even
to thy meat caches. And he bade
the men open them and be fed.
And lo, the caches were empty.
There was no meat. They stood
without sound, the people being
frightened, and in the silence
I lifted my voice. "O Moosu,
where is the meat? That there
was meat we know. Did we not
hunt it and drag it in from the
hunt? And it were a lie to say
one man hath eaten it; yet have
we seen nor hide nor hair. Where
is the meat, O Moosu? Thou hast
the ear of God. Where is the
meat?"
"'And the people cried, "Thou
hast the ear of God. Where is
the meat?" And they put their
heads together and were afraid.
Then I went among them, speaking
fearsomely of the unknown things,
of the dead that come and go
like shadows and do evil deeds,
till they cried aloud in terror
and gathered all together, like
little children afraid of the
dark. Neewak made harangue, laying
this evil that had come upon
them at the door of Moosu. When
he had done, there was a furious
commotion, and they took spears
in their hands, and tusks of
walrus, and clubs, and stones
from the beach. But Moosu ran
away home, and because he had
not drunken of hooch they could
not catch him, and fell one over
another and made haste slowly.
Even now they do howl without
his igloo, and his woman- folk
within, and what of the noise,
he cannot make himself heard.'
"'O Angeit,
thou hast done well,' I commanded.
'Go now,
taking this empty sled and the
lean dogs, and ride fast to the
igloo of Moosu; and before the
people, who are drunken, are
aware, throw him quick upon the
sled and bring him to me.'
"I waited and
gave good advice to the faithful
ones till Angeit
returned. Moosu was on the sled,
and I saw by the fingermarks
on his face that his womankind
had done well by him. But he
tumbled off and fell in the snow
at my feet, crying: 'O master,
thou wilt forgive Moosu, thy
servant, for the wrong things
he has done! Thou art a great
man! Surely wilt thou forgive!'
"'Call me "brother," Moosu--call
me "brother,"' I chided, lifting
him to his feet with the toe
of my moccasin. 'Wilt thou evermore
obey?'
"'Yea, master,'
he whimpered, 'evermore.'
"'Then dispose
thy body, so, across the sled,'
I shifted the
dogwhip to my right hand. 'And
direct thy face downwards, toward
the snow. And make haste, for
we journey south this day.' And
when he was well fixed I laid
the lash upon him, reciting,
at every stroke, the wrongs he
had done me. 'This for thy disobedience
in general--whack! And this for
thy disobedience in particular--
whack! whack! And this for Esanetuk!
And this for thy soul's welfare!
And this for the grace of thy
authority! And this for Kluktu!
And this for thy rights God-given!
And this for thy fat firstlings!
And this and this for thy income-tax
and thy loaves and fishes! And
this for all thy disobedience!
And this, finally, that thou
mayest henceforth walk softly
and with understanding! Now cease
thy sniffling and get up! Gird
on thy snowshoes and go to the
fore and break trail for the
dogs. CHOOK! MUSH-ON! Git!'"
Thomas Stevens smiled quietly
to himself as he lighted his
fifth cigar and sent curling
smoke-rings ceilingward.
"But how about the people of
Tattarat?" I asked. "Kind of
rough, wasn't it, to leave them
flat with famine?"
And he answered,
laughing, between two smoke-rings, "Were
there not the fat dogs?"
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