AND KAYAK 125 



and shoved. At one moment the boat was 

 leaping through a clear channel ; at the next, 

 a big ice pan would catch it and fling it round 

 with a shudder, while the men strove to hold 

 it off with their oars and perspired with the 

 exertion. It was an exciting time, but we got 

 through without much damage ; and I felt 

 as much relieved as the Eskimos when we 

 came to a stretch of open water and left the 

 churning ice behind us. 



About midday a light breeze sprang up, 

 and the men heaved a great sigh of relief as 

 they drew in their oars. In a minute they had 

 spread the sails, and the captain came jump 

 ing over the thwarts and took the tiller. 



Two of the oarsmen made their way to the 

 deep bows, and sat there chatting and filling 

 their pipes ; another just fell asleep where he 

 was, sprawling over his oar ; while Daniel 

 looked at me with a twinkle, and said again, 

 &quot; Me cook.&quot; 



He seemed to enjoy my mystification, for 

 his next move was to pull a great butcher- 

 knife from a sheath hanging at his belt, and 

 carefully sharpen it on the palm of his hand. 

 This was his hunting knife, his dinner knife, 

 the knife he used for cutting his tobacco and 

 for all other purposes possible to imagine, and 

 I wondered what strange new use he had in 



