ay that seals had come,
And that birds were in the air?
And when we went to look, no seals or birds were there.
Amna ajah ajah Hey!"

The extreme vigour with which the last word was uttered resulted from
the wizard having tripped in his dance, and come down heavily on the
ice, to the immense delight of his opponents and the children. But
Ujarak rose, and quelling the laugh with a look of dignity, continued:--

"Worse than a liar was this foolish puffin.
He hunted badly. When he flung the spear
The seals would laugh before they went away.
Sometimes he missed, sometimes he tipped the nose,
Sometimes hit the wrong animal,
And sometimes touched the tail.
Amna ajah ajah hey!"

This verse was a hit, for Okiok was known to be but an indifferent
marksman with the throwing-spear; yet such was his industry and his
ability to approach very near to his prey, that he was the reverse of a
bad hunter. But men in all lands are prone to shut their eyes to the
good, and to open them very wide to the evil, that may be said of an
adversary. Consequently at this point the chorus was given with great
vigour by the wizard faction, and the wizard himself, having worked
himself into a breathless condition by the mental effort and the furious
dance, deemed it a fitting occasion to take his first rest.

The custom in those duels is for each combatant to devote a quarter of
an hour or so to the attack, and then make way for his opponent, who at
once steps forward and begins his counter-attack. After a short time he
in like manner gives way, and his foe returns. Thus they proceed until
one is exhausted or overwhelmed; and he who has the last word gains the
victory, after which the dispute is held as settled, and they frequently
become better friends than before.

There was something in the expression of Okiok as he stepped sedately
into the ring which gladdened his friends and distressed his opponents.
Unlike the wizard, he was well formed, and all his movements were
comparatively elegant, so that in his case the conventional bit of dance
at the end of periods was pleasant to the eye, while his peculiar
advantage of rhyming power rendered his performance grateful to the ear.
After a little drumming he began:--

"Why must I step within this ring,
To jump and dance, and drum and sing?
You all know well that Okiok
Was never made an angekok.
Amna ajah ajah hey!"

"Amna ajah ajah hey!" yelled the hunter's