1914] THE RETURN FROM THE POLAR SEA 93 



coast, we were not surprised to find a sledge abandoned 

 by Arklio and Noo-ka-ping-wa on their return. They 

 had wisely decided to unite their few remaining weak- 

 ened dogs into one team. 



Ten miles south of this camp we saw four caribou 

 grazing on the frozen moss of a sloping hillside, 300 

 yards from the shore. Green guarded our dogs, while 

 E-took-a-shoo and I crept cautiously to within shoot- 

 ing-distance. We dropped upon our breasts and took 

 long, careful, deadly aim. Shot followed shot. Six in 

 all! The caribou regarded them as mere every -day in- 

 cidents, hardly raising their heads! Beginning to dis- 

 trust my eyes at the sight of four big bodies calmly 

 feeding at what was apparently a distance of only forty 

 yards away, I scrutinized the fat face of my Eskimo 

 companion. He grinned sheepishly, pressed his cheek 

 more firmly to the stock of his .44, squinted, and pulled 

 again. This last shot was comforting in that it was 

 acknowledged by a start, a shaking of heads, and a dis- 

 appearance over the crest of the nearest hill. 



"The last of them," I muttered, as I started back 

 toward the sledges. 



E-took-a-shoo stood wavering, first looking at me 

 and then toward the hill. To my surprise, he tucked 

 his rifle under his arm and began to ascend the hill. 



"Good courage," I remarked to Green, "but he'll 

 never get them." 



He was back in fifteen minutes with them all! Per- 

 sistency combined with patience — the secret of a good 

 hunter — these qualities the Eskimo has in a marked 

 degree. 



We fed a whole caribou to each team. How they 

 ripped into the red, tender flesh ; how they crunched and 



