ARCTIC FRIENDS AND ENEMIES 



the crust on top of the snow. Zilla listened attentively, 

 but never growled after I once patted him on the head. 

 He knew I wanted him to be calm. Evidently the fellow 

 was trying to get me between himself and the sky line, 

 for the night was clear, but fortunately there was no moon. 



On around the edge of the timber continued the foot- 

 steps. I was chilled through and through, and I was grow- 

 ing impatient. The footsteps neared the edge of the tim- 

 ber on the river bank and then all was silent. I waited 

 for some time, but could not hear a sound. I could not 

 stand it any longer; the fellow might be crawling toward 

 me on the bare ground in the clearing. I proposed to let 

 him know I was awake and bring him to his feet. I hal- 

 looed, there was no response of any kind, no rustle of foot- 

 steps or shifting of position. There was no rush of the 

 enemy from any point. I knew not what to make of it. 

 I waited for some time and still not a sound. I was puz- 

 zled ; I tried to persuade myself that I had been dreaming, 

 and I finally lay down in my blankets, almost frozen. 



It was just getting warm and comfortable, when Zilla 

 growled once more and I sat up in my blankets again. 

 Sure enough, there was the footstep again, and this time 

 it was coming directlv toward me, the man evidently keep- 

 ing the largest tree between himself and me. One advan- 

 tage I had, my position was such that I knew on which 

 side of the tree he must appear; my rifle was directed 

 to a point where I thought it would do the most good, and 

 my finger was on the trigger. The footsteps were now 

 very near; they were just behind the tree. The moment 

 of action had come ; I was full of expectation and actually 

 dead to every sense of fear. There was no escape, no 

 alternative, but to meet conditions as they arose. An im- 

 mense white Indian dog stepped from behind the tree. 

 For a moment I was almost paralyzed, so great was the 

 surprise, but gradually the true situation came to me. 

 There was a piece of moose meat hanging in the tree above 

 my head, and this strange dog had smelled it and had 

 been trying to find some place of approach whereby he 

 might get near enough to secure it. And it was his tread 

 and not that of a man that I had heard. But the noise 

 created by its breaking through the crust on the snow 



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