Muff, the Affectionate Mother Dog 203 



her collar bone. With a pitiful cry, that 

 sounded almost human, as she seemed to 

 realize her helplessness, she sank down in 

 her traces in the snow. 



We quickly examined her, and to our great 

 sorrow found that the clavicle was com- 

 pletely broken and the jagged ends were so 

 bent back and pressed into the flesh as, 

 doubtless, to be causing intense suffering. 



As gently as possible we unharnessed her, 

 and placing her on a robe spread out in the 

 snow, we replaced the two broken pieces of 

 the bone in position. 



It must have hurt her very much, but pa- 

 tient, intelligent Muff seemed to know that 

 we would do the best we could, and so there 

 was not a growl or any resistance. It was 

 but little that we could do for her in such a 

 place, and anyway as a sleigh dog she was 

 completely worthless to us now. 



What is to be done? was the question. 

 The Indians only thought of the one plan 

 that was the universal one among them 

 when such an accident happened under simi- 

 lar circumstances. That was to kill the dog 

 at once and go on with the thus diminished 

 train. We had known Hudson's Bay traders 

 to start off on a long trip with sixteen dogs 



