IN THE LAND OF LITTLE STICKS 187 



feet-first ; but the speed of the dogs never lessened until 

 the bottom had been reached, except when I brought up 

 against a rock, stopping them short, and nearly dislocating 

 my arms thereby. 



By-and-by I grew skilful enough to stay on my feet once 

 in a while, and on such occasions a rush after the dogs at 

 top speed would take me up to the foregoer about half- 

 way down the hill, where I fell on him as though he were 

 a football rolling back of the line from a blocked kick and 

 I was after a touch-down. And then we were rather a 

 mixed-up lot, I and the dogs and the sledge until I had 

 given Foro a few samples of my English pronunciation. 



Poor old Foro ! how miserable he made my life for a 

 while ! After I had dropped on him half a dozen times 

 in the middle of a wild gallop downhill he began to un- 

 derstand my " W-h-o-a !" and then we got on better. 



And what a lesson, too, in snow-shoeing was this dog- 

 driving ! It was reasonable, I suppose, for me to believe 

 myself somewhat skilled on snow-shoes by the time I had 

 reached Great Slave Lake. But when I started from 

 Beniah's lodge I discovered there was much to learn. No 

 man may consider himself an expert until he has driven 

 dogs and handled a sledge over such country as that ap- 

 proaching the Land of Little Sticks even the heart-break- 

 ing and shoe-tripping muskeg is not a circumstance to it. 



By referring to the map of the Barren Grounds on page 185, the reader 

 will find the routes of those explorers who have penetrated into the Barren 

 Grounds. Both Pike and Munn reached Great Slave Lake by Hudson's 

 Bay Company steamer and by canoe from Athabasca Landing. 



Frank Russel, the other white man who has succeeded in getting into the 

 Barrens, started from Fort Rae, which he reached by Hudson's Bay Company 

 steamer. Mr. Russet's route would be given were it known to me. As near 

 as I could learn at Great Slave Lake, Mr. Russell took a course north of east 

 from Fort Rae, which he held for from six to eight days before turning back. 



Within the borders of the Land of Little Sticks the 



