The wind backing to the
westward in the afternoon, we anchored the ships to the largest
floe-piece we could find, there not being room to beat to the
windward. While thus employed we heard voices in-shore, which we
soon knew to be those of some Esquimaux coming off to us. Shortly
after, several canoes made their appearance, and seventeen of
these people came alongside the Fury. Having hauled their _kayaks_
(canoes) upon the floe, they began to barter their commodities,
consisting of seal and whale blubber, whalebone, spears, lines,
and the skins of the seal, bear, fox, deer, and dog. Our first
endeavour was to procure as much oil as possible, of which, as we
had been informed by the Hudson's Bay ships, several tons are thus
almost annually obtained from these people. We soon found that
they had been well accustomed to bargain-making, for it was with
some difficulty that we could prevail on them to sell the oil for
anything of reasonable value. They frequently gave us to
understand that they wanted saws and harpoons in exchange for it,
and as these were articles which we could not spare, it was not
without trouble that we obtained, in the course of the evening,
two barrels of blubber in exchange for several knives, large
nails, and pieces of iron hoop, which was certainly a dear bargain
on our side.
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