Survey of Northeast Greenland. 323 
the keenest dogs, which practice is undoubtedly excellent when 
fighting wolf and bear, but which is of no use against a hunter 
provided with a rifle. 
When the four cows had been shot, the dogs immediately 
pounced upon one of the calves, tore it to pieces and devoured it 
on the spot. On seeing this I raised my rifle in order to shoot the 
other calf at once, but at the same moment it came running towards 
me, quite happy and content; I could not murder it in cold blood, 
and again lowered my rifle. We then took out the entrails of the 
four animals and returned to the sledges followed by the calf. Our 
dogs, on the other hand, we had to leave behind; they threw them- 
selves over the entrails of the cows and would not be driven away. 
The calf walked between Togıas and myself all the way back to the 
sledges, to the great amusement and surprise of BERTELSEN, and there 
it was photographed and — killed. We now drove with the sledges 
towards the animals we had shot, and succeeded in approaching 
them at a distance of one kilometre"). We immediately slipped the 
dogs and drove them towards the dead oxen, and then there was a 
feast of a peculiar kind. The dogs tore and slashed at the carcases, 
and all the while we three men were busy cutting out big chunks 
of meat and flinging them to our dogs. Gradually they began to be 
satisfied; they ate no longer of the meat, but tore off a bit of tallow 
here, a few hairs there, and evidently only continued eating, because 
they could not find it in their hearts to stop. A few of them were, 
however, already prostrate on the battle field; they lay on their 
sides, with their four legs stretched out, surfeited and gasping. Their 
bellies were round and protruding, but, on the other hand, their 
extreme emaciation was terribly evident, now that their skins were 
distended, and in spite of their thick coats the sharp spine and hip 
bones were a ghastly sight. But this made us all the happier that 
we could now feed them well for six to eight days, perhaps even 
longer; now our dogs should be permitted to rest for a couple of 
days, and being fed amply and well they would undoubtedly regain 
their strength. | 
When the dogs could eat no more, we cut out a large chunk 
of meat for ourselves, went back to our tent, pitched it and ate an 
excellent musk ox soup. We were now very tired. We had been on 
the go for twenty-six hours at a stretch, had travelled, that is walked, 
about 40 kilometres, and taken observations at three stations. We 
were badly in need of a rest in our sleeping bags; but first there 
was one more task to be performed: the oxen had to be cut up, 
*) It was the lack of sufficient snow which prevented us from driving right up to 
the carcases. 
