The Winter Night. 287 



through the head to make sure. The dogs had crowded 

 round barking as long as he moved, but now that he 

 lay still in death they drew back terrified. They 

 probably thought it was some new ruse of the enemy. 

 It was a little thin, one-year-old bear that had caused 

 all this terrible commotion. 



' Whilst it was being flayed I went off in a north- 

 westerly direction to look for the dogs that were still 

 missing. I had not gone far when I noticed that the 

 dogs that were following me had caught scent of some- 

 thing to the north, and wanted to go that way. Soon 

 they got frightened, and I could not get them to go on ; 

 they kept close in to my side or slunk behind me. I held 

 my gun ready, while I crawled on all fours over the pack- 

 ice, which was anything but level. I kept a steady look- 

 out ahead, but it was not far my eyes could pierce in that 

 darkness. I could only just see the dogs, like black 

 shadows, when they were a few steps away from me. I 

 expected every moment to see a huge form rise among 

 the hummocks ahead, or come rushing towards me. The 

 clogs got more and more cautious, one or two of them 

 sat down, but they probably felt that it would be a shame 

 to let me go on alone, so followed slowly after. Terrible 

 ice to force one's way over ! Crawling along on hands 

 and knees does not put one in a very convenient 

 position to shoot from if the bear should make a sudden 

 rush. But unless he did this, or attacked the dogs, I 

 had no hope of getting him. We now came out on 



