278 LABRADOR 



man killed (also in 1906) was driving home, and had badly 

 fed, savage dogs. He was apparently beating them, 

 when they fell on him and nearly tore him to pieces. Each 

 of the two children fell down in the midst of a pack that 

 had begun fighting. 



The dogs will kill almost any kind of domestic animal 

 quite naturally. I was passing a house one day into which 

 an elderly lady was driving a goat. I heard a shout and 

 noticed my leading dog was calmly proceeding on the way, 

 dragging the unfortunate goat in his mouth by the hind leg. 

 Our traces, harness, and all fastenings are made of sealskin, 

 and these the dogs love to eat, but most will readily learn 

 not to do so. I have had dogs which would not eat their 

 skin shoes that we put on them to save their feet against the 

 cutting of the ice crust. At the same time my sealskin 

 whip has often been eaten, a deed which one scarcely knew 

 whether to attribute to bad taste or to great sagacity. 



There is nothing an Eskimo dog likes more than a fight. 

 The moment the noise of a fight breaks the silence, every 

 dog in hearing will fly off at full speed to the spot and " chip 

 in." Members of one team will, as a rule, stick together; 

 a whole team will saunter out, and try to lure passers-by 

 into a melee. As a rule, however, all dogs will bite the first 

 to fall, and if one has the misfortune to be thrown on his 

 back, it is nearly certain his fate is sealed. It is marvellous 

 how soon they can kill the enemy. I have known it done 

 in two minutes, a great fang finding a billet in the carotid 

 artery. I had purchased a fine dog for a leader one year, 

 and on the first trip left him tied with the team in harness 

 while I went to pay a visit. He was dead and partly eaten 

 when I returned. 



