Eskimo (Bering Straits)

ONE day Man hunted for seals along the seashore. Many seals were there, but as Man crept carefully up to them, they slipped into the water. At last only one seal was left on the rocks. Man crept up to it carefully, but just as he was about to catch the seal, it slipped into the water.

Then Man stood up. His breast was full of a strange feeling. Water began to drop from his eyes. He put up his hand and caught the drops; thus he saw that they were really water. Then loud cries came from his breast and more water came out of his eyes. Now Man’s son saw him coming. He called to his wife that Man was making a strange noise. So they went down to the seashore. They were surprised to see water coming out of his eyes. Then Man told them he had tried to catch seals. He had crept carefully up, but they slipped into the water. Thus all the seals had escaped. Then water began to come out of the eyes of the son and his wife. Loud cries came from their breasts. In this way people first learned to cry. Afterward, Man and his son killed a seal; then they made snares for more seals from its skin.