WHITSUNTIDE AMENITIES. 381 



Whether Schei's dogs had bitten their traces off, or had broken 

 loose, I do not know; suffice it to say that they came running 

 up at this juncture, but interested themselves considerably more 

 in the fallen than in the living cattle. Although we had not 

 thought of killing more than three or four animals, we were 

 obliged to shoot them all, for it was almost impossible to catch the 

 dogs as long as there was living game about. We could not 

 approach the animals, as they would have attacked us, nor would 

 they go their way. Several of them, however, were wounded. 

 The calves, poor little things, had not the sense to be afraid ; they 

 stood, helpless and alone, and allowed themselves to be caught 

 like tame animals. 



We at once began to skin and open the animals, and cut 

 the meat from the bones, so that we need not take the latter with 

 us. It was a lengthy business, and one which we did not finish 

 that day. When we were thoroughly hungry and tired we 

 pitched the tent and cooked some dinner! It was the Seventeenth 

 of May and Whitsim Eve, consequently a ' double event,' and we 

 therefore thought we might allow ourselves to be as festive and 

 comfortable as circumstances would allow. We spread a large 

 ox-skin on the ground, pitched the tent upon it, and placed 

 another large skin outside the door, so that we could take off our 

 boots and be comfortable in the open air, for there was brilliant 

 sunshine, and only a few degrees of frost. While the cooking 

 was going on the tent-door stood wide open, and after a sumptuous 

 meal of broth, meat, marrow-bones and other delicacies, we 

 lighted our pipes and lay comfortably in front of the tent, half 

 hidden in the long soft hair of the skin, while our pretty Nor- 

 wegian flag waved from the roof its greeting from the land and 

 folk we held so dear. 



What a change for us ! Weeks of toil and hardship, combined 

 with increasing anxiety as to the fate of our dogs, and now here 

 steeped in unalloyed wellbeing ! It is true we had not a single 

 drop of spirits of any kind, but we really did not require any. 

 One might look long for a pleasanter Seventeenth of May; and 

 our dogs shared the joys of existence with us. They revelled 

 in the delicious warm meat, until they could hardly move 

 their jaws. 



