278 HUNTING WITH THE ESKIMOS 



a large kettle of hot tea for the Eskimos when they 

 returned from the hunt, which they presently did, un- 

 successful. 



They were a hungry lot of hunters when they 

 gathered around the dead seals to feed like animals 

 upon the raw, bloody meat. 



Finally, the dogs fed and taken care of, we turned 

 into sleeping-bags for much needed rest. As we 

 slept, a strong north wind sprang up, and when we 

 rose to resume our journey we found it raw and pierc- 

 ing. But presently the weather moderated and snow 

 began to fall heavily. 



It will be remembered that we were still on the 

 Smith Sound ice, heading for Ellesmere Land. We 

 attempted to make land south of Victoria Head, but 

 very rough, rafted ice repelled us, and the thick, fall- 

 ing snow shut out all view ahead. We were at length 

 compelled to abandon our effort and go into camp 

 again to await more favorable conditions. 



The Eskimo divides his periods into "sleeps," but 

 a sleep does not designate by any means the civilized 

 measure of day and night. It is, in fact, a very un- 

 certain term. Often we traveled from twenty to 

 thirty hours without rest. Now there was no night, 

 and I so far lost count of time that I was not at all 

 certain of dates. Our single marches, with the suc- 

 ceeding "sleep," not infrequently covered a full 

 forty-eight hours or two ordinary days. The object 

 of these extended marches was to take advantage of 

 good weather and general conditions, or because no 

 safe or convenient camping-place presented itself in 



