ESQUIMAUX DOGS. 
441 
the unpretending pride that becomes a conscious su- 
periority, I engaged to pilot him hack safely to our 
little world of dry clothes. Of my success I am not 
constrained to speak ; hut should this hook ever recall 
to him the adventures of the day, he shall he welcome 
to his laugh at my expense. I confess, when he was 
a second time swimming ahout in the sludge, I really 
feared his dip would he a deep one. I admit also, on 
the evidence of my shipmates, that, treated as a group, 
the effect is unique of a couple of human beings slip- 
ping heels up on an ice-margin while they are hold- 
ing up a third by the strap of his shot-pouch. 
Both our vessels were carrying home Esquimaux 
dogs. By continued kindness and over-feeding, I suc- 
ceeded in quite changing the nature of ours: both 
Disco and Hosky were on the high road to civilization. 
But those on board the Rescue and the Albert were 
still as wild as jackals : let loose upon the ice, it was 
almost impossible to catch them again. One after- 
noon, a little below the Devil's Thumb, when the dogs 
of the Albert were out on the floe for exercise, a sud- 
den breeze allowed her to work to windward through 
an open lead. One poor dog was left behind. Boats 
were sent out to recover him, and we all tried by voice 
and gesture to coax him toward us. But the half 
savage, though he stood gazing at us wildly when we 
were at a distance, ran skulking and wolf-like as soon 
as we were near. We were forced at last to abandon 
him to his fate. We could see him for hours, a dark 
speck upon the white floe ; and afterward, as far off 
as the spy-glass served, still with his head raised and 
his body thrown back on his haunches. Worse than 
this ; such was the quiet expanse of ice and water, 
that we heard the poor creature's howling, waxing 
