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Should the evolutionist inform the villager that man did not at first stand in an erect position as at present, but went round on his hands and feet; that the sperm whale originated from an animal akin to the bear; and that other great changes have taken place among the various members of the animal kingdom, the Tigara man would again reply: "Yes, the earliest men did not have their lower extremities developed for walking; the Bow-head whale originated from an animal similar to the deer, while another member of the whale family, called the Killer, armed with large teeth instead of baleen, originated from an animal akin to the wolf; the deer of old was a hornless and carniverous animal, having teeth like those of the bear, its canines being quite long, and when it appeared in herds the earlier inhabitants were alarmed, as it used to attack and devour the people."
On the first introduction of flour, the people did not care for it, but about 1890 they learned the art of making "nookpowras," flour mixed with a small amount of water, then dropped into boiling seal or whale oil. "Nookpowras" proved quite popular, and flour became a demand. A few years back instructions were begun among the young people at Tigara in the simple art of cooking.
A few copper kettles of Russian make found their way into Tigara from the Diomedes about sixty years back; they were very expensive and could be afforded by but few. The "Ongootkoots" frequently broke up these kettles and pounded the copper into knives, these being the first metal blades known among the Inupash.
Afterward, the heads were made movable with a line attached, having the advantage of holding crosswise when driven well in. About one hundred miles east of the village of Tigara, in the land of the Kivalinyas, a man once darted a beluga, but becoming entangled in the line he was dragged off into the ocean.
The signs of an advancing civilization are to be noted in the way of small towns and mining camps, extending even as far north as Nome; then, if the journey is continued through the Behring Straits into the Arctic regions where in winter, the moon forms its circle in the heavens, while in summer, the sun remains up as if trying to make amends for its long winter's absence up as far as Point Hope to the village of Tigara, the tourist will find there an interesting and friendly people.
The village of Tigara is at the extremity of the storm swept point, which used to extend westward much further. When "Tooloogigra" had fulfilled his time on earth, he did not die as an ordinary mortal, but ascended into the sky, the people standing below, watching him until he had faded from sight in the distance.
Soap and water, and with them cleanliness, have also been introduced. If in traveling along the coast one meets with clean young natives, who ask for a piece of soap, he may know that they are from Tigara, or have spent a season or two in the village; at least so say the persons who have had this experience.
The man of Tigara, through his traditions, has known all these things for ages past, while the man of science is only finding them out through his patient investigations.
Should the geologist inform the villager that North America was once under water, only the tops of the highest mountains extending above the one great ocean, like so many islands, and that then the ocean currents carried their warmth to the Pole, the Tigara man would reply: "Yes, in very old times only three mountain-tops extended above the ocean, and it was at a very remote day that my ancestors first appeared."
The earliest method appears to have been through the agency of iron pyrites, called "cozgeen" or "igneen," and from the latter has been derived "ignek," the Tigara word for fire. Two pieces of "igneen," being struck together, would emit a spark; a small-sized heap of tinder being placed on the ground the operator would continue striking the glancing blows until a lucky spark ignited the mass.
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