252 HUNTING WITH THE ESKIMOS 



for bare flesh would fasten instantly to it and become 

 painfully frost-bitten, leaving wounds like burns. 

 I took out my rifles one day to try them, and for- 

 getting to breathe on a trigger before pulling it 

 tore the skin from the finger where it touched the 

 metal. Ice put into the kettle to melt sent out vol- 

 leys of reports like whole packs of fire-crackers dis- 

 charged at once. 



Billy and I cut our last piece of fresh meat one 

 day, and our coal supply finally reached so low an 

 ebb that we were driven to strict economy in its use 

 and kept so slight a fire that the shack was far from 

 comfortable. Hares were the only animals in the 

 vicinity to hunt, and they were so wild and scarce 

 that only once, after several days hunting assidu- 

 ously for them, did I succeed in killing one. Noth- 

 ing could be done for our relief without the assist- 

 ance of Eskimos and dogs. 



A short distance south of Annootok is a low hill 

 and by climbing to the top of it one can get a good 

 view of the frozen sound for a long way to the 

 southward. Not a day passed that Billy or I did 

 not make a pilgrimage to its summit to scan the trail 

 in the hope of sighting dog-teams coming north. I 

 was here one day when I saw a black object three or 

 four miles distant, slowly making its way through 

 the rough ice toward camp. Eskimos were coming 

 at last! In spite of myself I grew excited. It was 

 pleasing to know that we were to have some one with 

 us again. 



I ran down to camp to tell Billy the good news, 



