October, 1S64.] A Becir-IIuut. 81) 



tilled with small vermin, socm joined their coni])ani(ms. 'I'lic slain 

 animal was immediately cut up and hauled to tlio if/loo, within w liicli 

 all rested more comfortably on the night following, rcposino- on a 

 part of their prize, the soft woolly skin, which felt like a feather-bed. 

 Having no blubber for oil, they could have no liglit. In tln^ morning, 

 after making more than one meal on their fresh meat, they succeeded 

 in getting their spoils to the place where they had left their sledge, 

 which they now heavily loaded. x\n addition of reindeer and bear 

 meat made up a weight in all of nearly 3,000 pounds, a heavy burden 

 of 200 pounds for each of the dogs. They arrived at home early in 

 the afternoon, the state of the weather having dissuaded them from 

 pursuing the second musk-ox. 



The day following, after a long pursuit by eight of the Innuits 

 and their boys with guns, spears, and dogs, the party at times travel- 

 ing over very rough ice and then on the new sea-ice which in some 

 places treacherously opened under them, a bear was slain by a third 

 ball, after his taking to the open water A line passed through his 

 jaws brought the carcass on the floe, where, the weight of the animal 

 being reduced by removing his entrails, the prize was at last secured 

 by being drawn by ropes fastened through his nose and to each of his 

 fore paws over the thin ice and across the fissures to the firm land 

 While Hall was assisting in dragging this^ bear, he i-epeatedly broke 

 til rough the ice into the sea. 



His next trip was with two parties of the Innuits coasting on 

 two sleds — one 10 feet in length, the other G — over ice so rough 

 that "as they went along banging and thumping over it the very 

 life seemed to be shaken out, and with difficulty they clung to the 

 sleds." Arriving at a place where they, some time before, liad made 



