1915] THE WINTER OF 1915-16 20^ 



Fearing lest my sledge should capsize, I was strug- 

 gling with the upstanders to direct it, when a wild yell 

 from E-took-a-shoo close behind us warned me of ap- 

 proaching danger. His sledge crashed into mine, and, 

 both stopping suddenly, his dogs snapped the hitching- 

 strap and tore off down the slope. Immediately came 

 another warning cry as E-say-oo's blacks shot between 

 us; and his sledge, on which were piled all of his worldly 

 goods, was added to the wreck. Ah-nah-we, his wife, 

 and ten-year-old Nup-sa, who were perched on top of 

 the load, did not stop with their conveyance, but invol- 

 untarily continued on their way, the former landing 

 upon her stomach among the dogs, and the latter upon 

 his nose against E-took-a-shoo 's load. The stream of 

 blood and the yells which followed were both checked 

 with considerable difficulty. At length the runaway 

 dogs were whipped back up the hill, the sledges and 

 harness were disentangled, and laughter replaced groans. 



We spent two nights at Nerky to feed and strengthen 

 our dogs with seal meat which we had cached there in 

 the fall. Our next camp was made at Ig-loo-nark-suah, 

 rather than attempt to crowd into the already well-filled 

 igloos at Ig-loo-de-houny. Here, to my surprise, I heard 

 one of the Eskimo boys humming the air of "Auld Lang 

 Syne." He had learned it from our victrola! 



On the morning of November 4th we deemed it im- 

 prudent to attempt the route to Kah-na over new ice 

 now doubly treacherous because of a thin covering of 

 recently fallen snow. The color of ice is constantly 

 noted to determine its thickness. But at noon three 

 more sledges arrived with the same destination in view. 

 Encouraged by numbers, we now went on together, 

 somew^hat gingerly, across McCormick Bay to Cape 



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