2l6 



ICE-BOUND ON KOLGUEV 



Samoyeds. For we have two stranger families with us. 

 Of whom more to-morrow. 



A wandering dog kept pushing in his nose under the 

 sail against my head, on the look-out, no doubt, for goose. 

 For a long time I took no notice. You learn to be very 

 careful with these dogs. One does not matter much, but 

 you may very easily bring the whole pack about your 

 ears. At last I thought it had gone far enough, and the 

 next time the canvas begin to move I knelt up very 

 quietly, doubled my fist, and caught the prowler a crack 



MY ADI.IURS, MY TOOK, AND MY RESIDENCE 



on his nose so unexpectedly and with such effect that he 

 fled half howling and half growling. A Samoyed does 

 not hit his dog, he only adjures him ; so no wonder this 

 dog was scared. 



With that the whole pack — and I reckon we had thirty 

 dogs — broke into a scream like maniacs, and the women 

 rushed out to see what was up ; so that, what with the 

 noise of the dogs and the women, and the men who yelled 

 from the ' yierserk ' [tents] at the women and the dogs, for 

 a short time we had quite a Wagnerian symphony. But 

 gradually all grew still. Once only after that I heard a 



