WINTER QUARTERS 145 



bags and crawled into them. We froze our hands repeatedly, 

 and not even in our bags could we keep ourselves from 

 freezing. 



With only an interval of a few minutes we were calling to 

 each other, as we dared not sleep for fear of never waking 

 again ; we kicked our feet to keep them warm, and our stiff 

 fur parkeys froze to the sleeping bag. The length of this night 

 was awful. As we lay on our backs, looked up at the stars, 

 which were visible through the snowdrift, and thought of the 

 hopelessness of our condition, the strain was almost over- 

 whelming. We knew that we had not much strength left, and 

 that it would be a mere chance if we ever found Ned's cabin, 

 and we also knew that if we missed it, if only by two hundred 

 yards, we could not see it, and would be dead within a few 

 hours. And thus we lay waiting for the day to come, looking 

 toward the south-east to catch the first signs of the breaking 

 morning, while over us the blizzard was howling, and the snow 

 was packing hard about two almost prostrate forms huddled 

 close together and shivering with cold in the bags. 



The thoughts which passed through our minds were many 

 and varied. Memories of childhood, mingled with remem- 

 brances of our grown-up life, were passing through our minds 

 with the vividness and rapidity of a cinematograph ; everything 

 we had done, good and bad, passed in review before us while 

 we lay -there looking to the south-east and waiting for the day to 

 come. The two dogs which we had left lay curled up close 

 to us, and we had a string fastened to one of them he at least 

 could be eaten in our last struggle for life. 



Day came at last, the stars faded, the sky became lighter 

 and lighter, and at 8 A.M. we started, frozen, and hardly able 

 to walk. 



For a second the furious snowdrift seemed to slacken, and 

 the vision of a cache a little to our right made us change our 

 course. And five minutes later we were in Ned's house, with 

 Ekajuak hustling about, ridding us of our frozen furs, rubbing 

 our faces and hands, our feet and our knees, in order to restore 

 circulation, and after that giving us something to eat. The 

 good woman almost wept to see the plight we were in. 



One dog, old Dad, had already come into camp, and the 

 rest appeared several days later, while one, Soreback, came in 



A.I. L 



