Eskimo Folk Tales Part 21

And now the evil spirit came in sight out on the ice; they could see the tips of its ears over the hummocks as it crept along. When it came up to the houses, not a dog barked, and none dared try to surround it, for it was not a real bear. But at last an old woman began crying to the dogs:

"See, there is your cousin--bark at him!" And now the dogs were loosed from the magic that bound them, and when the men saw this, they too dashed forward, and harpooned that thing.

But when they came to cut up the bear, they knew its skin for the old woman's coverlet, and its bones were human bones.

And now the sledges drove out to find the gear they had left behind, and they saw that everything was torn to pieces. And when they found Papik, he was cut about in every part. Eyes, nose and mouth and ears were hacked away, and the scalp torn from his head.

Thus that old woman took vengeance for the killing of her son Ailaq.

And so it was our fathers used to tell: when any man killed his fellow without good cause, a monster would come and strike him dead with fear, and leave no part whole in all his body.

The people of old times thought it an ill thing for men to kill each other.

This story I heard from the men who came to us from the far side of the great sea.

PaTUSSORSSUAQ, WHO KILLED HIS UNCLE

There lived a woman at Kugkat, and she was very beautiful, and Alataq was he who had her to wife. And at the same place lived Patussorssuaq, and Alataq was his uncle. He also had a wife, but was yet fonder of his uncle's wife than of his own.

But one day in the spring, Alataq was going out on a long hunting journey, and made up his mind to take his wife with him. They were standing at the edge of the ice, ready to start, when Patussorssuaq came down to them.

"Are you going away?" he asked.

"Yes, both of us," answered Alataq.

But when Patussorssuaq heard thus, he fell upon his uncle and killed him at once, for he could not bear to see the woman go away.

When Patussorssuaq's wife saw this, she s.n.a.t.c.hed up her needle and sewing ring, and fled away, following the shadow of the tent, over the hills to the place where her parents lived. She had not even time to put on her skin stockings, and therefore her feet grew sore with treading the hills. On her way up inland she saw people running about with their hoods loose on their heads, as is the manner of the inland folk, but she had no dealings with them, for they fled away.

Then, coming near at last to her own place, she saw an old man, and running up, she found it was her father, who was out in search of birds. And the two went gladly back to his tent.

Now when Patussorssuaq had killed his uncle, he at once went up to his own tent, thinking to kill his own wife, for he was already weary of her. But she had fled away.

Inside the tent sat a boy, and Patussorssuaq fell upon him, crying:

"Where is she? Where is she gone?"

"I have seen nothing, for I was asleep," cried the boy, speaking falsely because of his great fear. And so Patussorssuaq was forced to desist from seeking out his wife.

And now he went down and took Alataq's wife and lived with her. But after a little time, she died. And thus he had but little joy of the woman he had won by misdeed. And he himself was soon to suffer in another way.

At the beginning of the summer, many people were gathered at Natsivilik, and among them was Patussorssuaq. One day a strange thing happened to him, while he was out hunting: a fox snapped at the fringe of his coat, and he, thinking it to be but a common fox, struck out at it, but did not hit. And afterwards it was revealed that this was the soul of dead Alataq, playing with him a little before killing him outright. For Alataq's amulet was a fox.

And a little time after, he was bitten to death by the ghost of Alataq, coming upon him in the shape of a bear. His daughter, who was outside at that time, heard the cries, and went in to tell of what she had heard, but just as she came into the house, behold, she had quite forgotten all that she wished to say. And this was because that vengeful spirit had by magic means called down forgetfulness upon her.

Afterwards she remembered it, but then it was too late. They found Patussorssuaq torn to pieces, torn limb from limb; he had tried to defend himself with great pieces of ice, as they could see, but all in vain.

Thus punishment falls upon the man who kills.

THE MEN WHO CHANGED WIVES

There were once two men, Talilarssuaq and Navssarssuaq, and they changed wives. Talilarssuaq was a mischievous fellow, who was given to frightening people.

One evening, sitting in the house with the other's wife, whom he had borrowed, he thrust his knife suddenly through the skins of the bench. Then the woman ran away to her husband and said:

"Go in and kill Talilarssuaq; he is playing very dangerous tricks."

Then Navssarssuaq rose up without a word, and put on his best clothes, and took his knife, and went out. He went straight up to Talilarssuaq, who was now lying on the bench talking to himself, and pulled him out on the floor and stabbed him.

"You might at least have waited till I had dressed," said Talilarssuaq. But Navssarssuaq hauled him out through the pa.s.sage way, cast him on the rubbish heap and went his way, saying nothing.

On the way he met his wife.

"Are you not going to murder me, too?" she asked.

"No," he answered in a deep voice. "For Pualuna is not yet grown big enough to be without you." Pualuna was their youngest son.

But some time after that deed he began to perceive that he was haunted by a spirit.

"There is some invisible thing which now and again catches hold of me," he said to his comrades. And that was the avenging spirit, watching him.

But about this time, many in the place fell sick. And among them was Navssarssuaq. The sickness killed him, and thus the avenging spirit was not able to tear him in pieces.

ARTUK, WHO DID ALL FORBIDDEN THINGS

A man whose name was Artuk had buried his wife, but refused to remain aloof from doings which those who have been busied with the dead are forbidden to share. He said he did not hold by such old customs.

Some of his fellow-villagers were at work cutting up frozen meat for food. After watching them for a while as they worked at the meat with their knives, he took a stone axe and hacked at the meat, saying:

"That is the way to cut up meat."