474 FARTHEST NORTH 



ards me, while tlie blood poured from his mouth and 

 nostrils. The ball had gone right through his head, 

 but without touching the brain. At last I had put 

 another cartridge in, but had to give him five shots 

 before I finally killed him. At each shot he fell, but 

 got up again. I was not accustomed to the sights on 

 Johansen's gun, and shot rather too high with it. At 

 last I grew angry, rushed up to him, and finished him 

 off." 



We were beginning to be well supplied with blubber 

 and meat for the journey south, and were now busy 

 fittine: ourselves out. And there was a Qrreat deal to 

 be done. We had to begin to make ourselves new 

 clothes out of our blankets ; our wind clothes had to 

 be patched and mended; our " komager " had to be 

 soled, and we had to make socks and orjoves out of 

 bearskin. Then we had to make a light, good sleeping- 

 bag of bearskin. All this would take time ; and from 

 this time we worked industriously at our needle from 

 early morning till late at night. Our hut was suddenly 

 transformed into a busy tailors and shoemaker's work- 

 room, where we sat side by side in the sleeping-bag 

 upon the stone bed, and sewed and sewed and thought 

 about the home-coming. We got thread by unravel- 

 ling the cotton canvas of some provision bags. It need 

 hardly be said that we were always talking about the 

 prospects for our journey, and we found great comfort in 

 the persistence of the dark sky in the southwest, which 



