46 HUNTERS AND HUNTING IN THE ARCT 



of Mount Saddle. To reach it, it would have 

 been necessary to march for another three 

 or four hours through swamps and wide 

 streams. Already we had been away from the 

 ship for three hours, and had been so unwise as 

 to bring nothing to eat or drink with us. We 

 therefore abandoned the idea of entering the 

 valley and turned back to the house, following 

 the cliffs. We saw a snipe. 



Before the house sat Merite making a sketch 

 of the musk-calf. The animal, sighting me in 

 the distance, unexpectedly took it into its head 

 to charge at me. Instinctively I levelled my 

 alpenstock like the ' garocha de vaquero ' ; 

 then I discovered that the beast had not me 

 for object but the dog following at my heels, 

 who appeared to be its deadly enemy. Despite 

 my awkward situation, I observed that a musk- 

 ox appears, when charging, more like a ram 

 than an ox. 



The purchase of the foxes was quickly con- 

 cluded. A sum of one hundred crowns changed 

 hands, and Rachlew signed a paper undertaking 

 to pay ten crowns more should the trappers find 

 the accepted amount insufficient when they 

 returned from their expedition. The foxes 

 were placed in a box and carried to the shore 

 by our guide. 





