122 THE NORTH-WEST PASSAGE BY LAND. 



Clieadle's beard and moustaclie — the only ones in tlie 

 company — from the moisture of the breath freezing 

 as it passed through the hair. The oil froze in the 

 pipes we carried about our persons, so that it was 

 necessary to thaw them at the fire before they could 

 be made to draw. The hands could hardly be ex- 

 posed for a moment, except when close to the fire. 

 A bare finger laid upon iron stuck to it as if glued, 

 from the instantaneous freezing of its moisture. The 

 snow melted only close to the fire, which formed a 

 trench for itself, in w^hich it slowly sank to the level 

 of the ground. The steam rose in clouds, and in 

 the coldest, clearest weather, it almost shrouded the 

 fire from view. The snow was light and powdery, 

 and did not melt beneath the warmth of the foot, so 

 that our moccasins were as dry on a journey as if we 

 had walked through sawdust instead of snow. The 

 parchment wdndows of our little hut were so small 

 and opaque, that we could hardly see even to eat by 

 their light alone, and were generally obliged to have 

 the door open ; and then, although the room was 

 very small, and the fire-place very large, a crust of 

 ice formed over the tea in our tin cups, as we sat 

 within a vard of the roarinof fire. One effect of 

 the cold was to give a most ravenous appetite for 

 fat. Many a time have we eaten great lumps of 

 hard gi^ease — rancid tallow, used for making candles 

 — ^nthout bread or anything to modify it.(^) 



(^) Fat seems to be the summum honum in ever3^thing, according 

 to Indian and half-breed tastes. They sav, " Wliat a fine horse ! he's 

 as fat as possible !" " Wliat a fine woman ! how fat she is !" and the 

 same of men, dogs, and everything. And fat is very important in 



