222 



THE ARCTIC PRAIRIES 



A wire held the leg; on the top of the wire was a 

 paddle or shingle of wood; above that, beyond the 

 heat, was a cord. 



The wind gives the paddle a push; it winds up the 

 cord, which then unwinds itself. This goes on without 

 fail and without effort, never still, and the roast is 

 perfect. 



Thus we were living on the fat of many lands and on 

 the choicest fat of this. 



And what a region it is for pasture. At this place 

 it reminds one of Texas. Open, grassy plains, sparser 

 reaches of sand, long slopes of mesquite, mesas dotted 

 with cedars and stretches of chapparal and soap weed. 

 Only, those vegetations here are willow, dwarf birch, 

 tiny spruce, and ledum, and the country as a whole 

 is far too green and rich. The emerald verdure of the 

 shore, in not a few places, carried me back to the west 

 coast of Ireland. 



