118 MARCUS AND JACOB. 



our game ; and these things they do well and cheer- 

 fully, for out of these pursuits grows an endless oppor- 

 tunity to feed ; and as for feeding, I have never seen 

 man nor beast that could rival them, especially Jacob. 

 The stacks of meat that this boy disposes of seem 

 quite fabulous ; and it matters not to him whether it 

 is boiled or raw. The cook declares that " he can eat 

 heself in three meals," meaning, of course, his own 

 weight; but I need hardly say that thitf is an exag- 

 geration. The steward quotes Shakespeare, and thinks 

 that he has hit the boy very hard when he proclaims 

 him to be a savage "of an unbounded stomach." 

 The sailors tease him about his likeness to the ani- 

 mals which he so ruthlessly devours. A pair of ant- 

 lers are growing; from his forehead, rabbit's hair is 

 sprouting on his distended abdomen, and birds' feath- 

 ers are appearing on his back ; his arms and legs are 

 shortening into flippers, his teeth are lengthening 

 into tusks, and they mean to get a cask of walrus 

 blubber out of him before the spring ; all of which he 

 takes good-naturedly; but there is a roguish leer in 

 his eye, and if I mistake not he will yet be even with 

 his tormentors. So much for my Esquimau subjects. 



October 21st. 



I have had another lively race to the glacier, and 

 have had a day of useful work. Hans drove Sonntag, 

 and Jensen was, as usual, my " whip." We took Carl 

 and Peter along to help us with our surveying ; and, 

 although there w r ere three persons and some instru- 

 ments on each sledge, yet this did not much interfere 

 with our progress. We were at the foot of the glacier 

 in forty minutes. 



The dogs are getting a little toned down with use, 



