AND KAYAK 117 



trotted over the crest of the slope again, 

 calling " Ha, ha, ha " to the dogs. 



For a long time I saw no more of him ; and 

 more than once Kristian said, " We ought to 

 have gone to the left : too slow, this." On 

 we went through the blinding snow : even 

 the dogs were out of sight ; I could see the 

 long trace slipping over the snow, with now 

 and again a glimpse of the tangled, knotted 

 mass of lines that led away to the dogs. 



The lines were always tight, and I knew by 

 that that Julius was somewhere ahead, and 

 that the dogs were following him. 



Suddenly he appeared, looking a real snow 

 man. " Here is the track," he announced, 

 and flung himself heavily on to the sled and 

 began to charge his pipe. Now the dogs ran 

 yelping on, and the sled raced after them 

 down the slope. The drags were on, but the 

 way was safe, for we had recognised the passage 

 between two rocks which marked the be- 

 ginning of the descent to the sea ice, and we 

 drove on with perfect confidence. We reached 

 the ice late in the afternoon, and found the 

 wind blowing straight from the north. This 

 was a help, for it gave us our course across 

 the bay ; but the dogs refused to face it, 

 and kept edging away to one side or the other, 

 so that once more we had to rely on the willing 



