Report of the First Thule Expedition 1912. 393 



with a thick layer of moss, tufts of grass, or Saxijraga oppositifolia — 

 and were thus of very antiquated origin. 



On the 10th May we reached the land behind (to the north of) 

 Danmarks Fjord. Here the ice fell away in a sheer cliff with projecting 

 brow, so that we were forced to lower our gear and ourselves down with 

 rope and tackle. As soon as we got down, we came upon musk ox dung 

 on the moraine: it was winter dung, but not from that year. 



On the 12th May we shot a solitary bull in the Zigzag Valley, 

 and on the same day a herd of eight, consisting of 3 bulls, (one old and 

 two younger), two young cows and 3 yearling calves. The country was 

 entirely free from snow. In the upper part of Zigzag Valley musk ox 

 tracks were plentiful everywhere. The beasts were all, with one excep- 

 tion, in very poor condition. Vegetation very scanty. 



On our way down through the Zigzag Valley we saw no musk ox, 

 nor any tracks of same, the country now being covered with deep snow. 



24th May. Shot a solitary bull close to the mouth of the Zigzag 

 River in Danmarks Fjord (Sjællandssletten). It was very old, with teeth 

 and hoofs much worn; in spite of this, however, it was not very big, 

 and in but poor condition, the meat very tough. 



26th May. On this day I found tracks of 3 musk ox not far away; 

 the animals had evidently come down from the hills by way of a ravine, 

 and moved outwards towards the coast along the lower slopes. They 

 had moved for the most part in single file, but with frequent halts in 

 order to graze. The snow had packed fairly hard, covering everything, 

 and they had cast it aside with their feet; there were frequent traces 

 of their having used their horns, though this may have been merely 

 in play. After a time I lost the tracks, owing to the driving snow, and 

 returned to the tent. Knud Rasmussen then drove out and found them 

 again, some distance farther off. They had then in several places tramp- 

 led the snow down in great patches, probably in play, and had been racing 

 aimlessly round some gravel mounds near the shore. When he approa- 

 ched, they dashed up to the top of one of these mounds and took up a 

 position there. The 20 dogs which formed the sledge team then sur- 

 rounded them, and it was some time before it was possible to fire. One 

 of the dogs was ripped up, and several others were wounded. A principal 

 part in the defence was taken by one very old ox, whose horns had both 

 been knocked off, so that only the bony core remained. All three stood 

 with their heads turned outwards, thus guarding against any attack 

 from behind. From this position they' sallied out, one at a time, to attack 

 the dogs, dashing forward some 12 — 20 metres and then retiring on 

 their old position, always however, stepping backwards so as to face 

 the attack all the time. 



The herd consisted, as already mentioned, of three bulls, one very 

 old, the two others young: one of these latter was in fairly good condi- 

 tion, the other two were poor. The stomachs were quite full, as is always 



