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Updated: July 3, 2025
"You gib it 'im a'most too strong, Massa Benjee." "Blackbeard must be the bad spirit," remarked Amalatok to his son that same night as they held converse together according to custom before going to bed. "The bad spirit is never kind or good," replied Chingatok, after a pause. "No," said the old man, "never." "But Blackbeard is always good and kind," returned the giant.
"Did I not say that they were fools?" said Amalatok, indignantly. "But the strangest thing of all," continued Chingatok, lowering his voice, and looking at his sire in a species of wonder, "is that they fill their mouths with smoke!" "What? Eat smoke?" said Amalatok in amazement. "No, they spit it out." "Did Blackbeard tell you that?" "Yes." "Then Blackbeard is a liar!"
"But there is to be no mere war! and I have been a warrior. No, let Amalatok be great chief. He is old, and wisdom lies with age." "I am not so sure of that!" muttered Captain Vane to himself in English; then to the giant in Eskimo, "What says Chingatok?" "May I speak, my father?" said the giant, dutifully, to Amalatok. "You may speak, my son."
"If Amalatok were to kill all his enemies all the men, women and children," said the Captain, raising a fierce gleam of satisfaction in the old man's face at the mere suggestion, "and if he were to knock down all their huts, and burn up all their kayaks and oomiaks, the insult would still remain, because an insult can only be wiped out by one's enemy confessing his sin and repenting."
Amalatok was indeed the chief of the island, but the respect and deference shown to him by the tribe were owing more to the man's age and personal worth, than to his rank. He had succeeded his father as chief of the tribe, and, during a long life, had led his people in council, at the hunt, and in war, with consummate ability and success.
"That will be clever," returned the chief, solemnised in spite of himself. "Let Blackbeard proceed." "Order one of your braves to stand before me on that piece of flat skin," said the Captain. Amalatok looked round, and, observing a huge ungainly man with a cod-fishy expression of face, who seemed to shrink from notoriety, ordered him to step forward.
Amalatok, on whose mind the spirit of Christianity had been gradually making an impression, said promptly, "Let Grabantak be chief. He is wise in council and brave in war." Grabantak had instantly jumped to the conclusion that he ought to be greatest chief, and was about to say so, when Amalatok's humility struck him dumb. Recovering himself he replied
"He wishes him to pay the Kablunets a visit. He has something to show to the great old chief." "Tell him I come," said the chief, with a toss of the head which meant, "be off!" "I wonder," said Amalatok slowly, as Anders crept out, "whether Blackbeard means to show us some of his wisdom or some of his foolishness. The white men appear to have much of both." "Let us go see," said Chingatok.
They would rather have faced their natural enemy, the great Grabantak, unarmed, any day! In this difficulty an idea occurred to Amalatok. Seizing a huge dog by the neck he dragged it to the mat, and bade it lie down. The dog crouched and looked sheepishly round. Next moment he was in the air wriggling.
"Rest content, Oolichuk," cried Amalatok, with a horrible grinding of his teeth; "we will tear out their hearts, and batter in their skulls, and " "But," resumed the Captain hastily, "I do not think the danger so great. All I would urge is that we should not delay going to their rescue "
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