Eskimo snow-shoe

• Format: Manuscript
• Language: English
• Published: 1974
• Subjects: English language > Dialects > Newfoundland and Labrador; eskimo*; Newfoundland
• Online Access: http://collections.mun.ca/cdm/ref/collection/elrcdne/id/53206

snow n Without the aid of the invaluable snow-shoes or racquets, nothing could be done out of doors in the deep snow. Pictures of the Eskimo in his snow-shoes have so frequently appeared in mis- sionary and other publications, that their appear- ance is familiar to most persons, and doubtless therefore to the reader. Nevertheless, a brief description of them may not be out of place here. They are composed of bow, bars, and "filling," as the insides are called. The bow is usually oval, and is always made of birch. The bars, of which there are two, are fitted within the bow, in order to strengthen it, and are placed about five inches from either end of the snow-shoe. The network inside consists of deer or sealskin, pre- viously prepared and cut into narrow strips. The spaces outside the bars are severally the toe and heel of the snow-shoe. These are filled with more finely cut skin than the middle space, the Indian term for which is [i]tibeesh[i], while the coarser filling of the middle space is called [i]babeesh[i]. Near the fore-bar is a hole for the toes, the snow-shoes being attached to the feet by leathern straps like those of a sandal. Everyone in my district made p. 79 | v his own snow-shoes, having more regard to use than ornament. But these made by the Indians, who consider ornament as well as use, are models of skill and delicate workmanship. Snow-shoes and kammutik are the only means of locomotion during the Winter, and without them life would be insupportable in the North. In the South of Newfoundland a snow-shoe is almost as rare a sight as it is in England. PRINTED ITEM DNE-cit JH W. J. KIRWIN JAN 1974 JH JAN 1974 Used I and Sup Not used Not used Stamped but not used in DNE.