ubbled, 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 walru