The Abbeville messenger. (Abbeville, S.C.) 1884-1887, 1886-03-23

SeltlnS nome again. lie went SO fal
as to provide himself with n small fire.
arm in case he was caught out all night,
to prevent the wolves taking = meal out
of him before the morning came. These
mnraudcrs had shown themselves quiet
often, making several dcscents on the
village itself and killing n number of
the Esquimaux dogs, u kind of food
which, singular to say, they seem to
like much better than almost any other
that they can get, at least if one could
Judge so from their fearless endeavors
to get at them, and the large number of
fine uogs that arc annually lost to these
natives by this means. They will sell
dom attack Il man, however, unless they
are in large numbers or greatly pressed
with hunger, which, fortunately, is sell
dom the case. Believing that this was
the only source of danger to which he
could be exposed, he treated lightly all
other ideas as to mischancc. One even
ing he did not put in all appearance rs
usual, and by the time it was quite dark
the utmost solicitudc was manifested re-
garding his absence. small parties of
Fsquimaux being sent out a good long
distance to see if any trace could be
found of the lost sailor. while from high
on the mast a bright light was displayed
to guide the wandcrcr home us we'll as
to direct the search parties that were
out. The utmost vigilance was unrc-
warded by midnight, and, leaving the
light burning ut the mast head, it was
determined that further efforts would
not only be useless, but impair the eff.
cacy Of the searches that could be made
next day.
The night was a true Arctic night of
bitter cold,s4O or so degrees below zero;
but as the sailor was dressed in native
reindeer clothing, obtained from the
many EsquimauX clustered around the
ship, it was felt that he was IN no great
danger of freezing, even in hat extra
ordinary cold, if he only kept moving,
which he certainly ought to be able to
do for a single night. 1t was abso-
lutely necessary hat everything that
was to be done should be ably prose-
cutcd next day, for it was quite evident
that such exercise could not he expected
to be kept up longer than one night,
and every one knows the terrible effect
of stopping to sleep in such intensely
low temperatures, especially when one
has been long without food to supply
the bodily warmth. The EsquimauX
themselves, when caught out in this
manner, build a very small snow house,
Just large enough to crawl into (for no
EsqulmauN of this region ever attempts
to leave his home without Il snow knife
IN his hand, rs n weapon of defense or
as a means of building a little hut), and
drawing his arms out of the sleeves of
his rrindeer coat he crosses them On his
bare breast, and thus converting his
clothes into n sort of Arctic sleeping
bag, he reposes in comparative comfort
for a single night, and if he could get
all ne wanted to cat-no small quantity
for a good sized Esquimaux in bitter
cold weathcr-he would probably be
able to live indefinitely in his way, so
little do they care for the ordinary COM
forts of life, or, better speaking, ordi-
nary comforts as viewed from IL
standpoint. There was but little fear
that next day the lost man wonld be
found, as EsquimauX were induced to
start in several directions to look him
up, and it is certainly very hard work
to escape the eagle eyes of these %trailers
when they are warmly enlisted in track
ing anything, man or animal, and the
reward held out was 40 small one.
Many Of the native parties were am
ply p%rovisioned SO as to be absent a day
or two should it be needed, more for
the reason that the latter half of the
short day would not have to be used in
returning home if unsuccessful in the
first halt than any hope of being able to
rescue him alive on the second day.
Iime wore anXiously on, and although
q few of the parties sent out had re-
turned, it was only to report that they
were sure that the missing man had not
taken the direction assigned to them in
the search and as there was but little
use questioning their ideas on these
points, SO faithful are they in their I'M
,dertakings of this character. and so little
do white men know in the same field
comparatively, that their opinions were
mournfully accepted. The imprisoned
Glacier was frozen in near the eastern
side Of the broad bay, a mile or two
probably from shore, while it was m
thing like twelve or fifteen to the west
ern shores of Repulse Bay, which were,
however, from their bold, hilly outline,
plainly visible at that distance. 1t
seemed very hard to think that a man
should be irretricvably lost in such a
basin-like bay with bold shores, unless
he had wandered off across the land.
and this idea had been instrumental in
directing most of the search parties
toward the nearest land, and from there
inland. 1t was some of these land par
ties that were coming in reporting the
failure of their mission. Anxiously
enough the March afternoon was wear
ing away, and just before nightfall the
mate sent a man aloft to display the Ian
tern from the maintop for the second
night, and to satisfy his w curiosity
rather than hoping to see anyone, he
borrowed the masters fine telescope,
and from his high perch he scanned the
dreary, waste of white, hummocky ice