Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1890-11-06

prisoners are confded: his consideration
| and willingness to help did not go beyond
certain limit fixed in advance Besides
he persisted in refusing to touch the few
provisions which appeared upon the common
table.
In the midst of their perjury, with famine
threatening them if the Yakoutes did not
soon return, the fugitives had a stroke of
good luck.
Wab succeeded in capturing unaided a
deer Of the same species as that recently
killed by Yermac. The dog leaped at its
throat and did not let 90 until the animal
was strangled This exploit accomplished
the brave dog returned to the hut and dis
played such desire to have Yegor follow it
that the young man did so, the dog leading
him to the spot where the victim lay. The
two other dogs were keeping guard over the
precious prey. The deer was drawn tri-
umphantly to the hut and the dogs We're not
forgotten, especially Wab.
Yernac, still inf1exible, limited. himself to
remarzing that his deer was larger than
that killed by Wab.
NJ. Lafleur, seeing the difficulty of placing
his hand on bear, fell back upon the seals.
He made harpOOn and used the Siberian
dogs to discover the retreats of the amphib-
ious creatures. The dogs, gifted with keen
scent, led him to number of those narrow
openings that the seals make in the ice and
through which they breathe-and get har-
pooned. The Partisan, despite cold and
hunger, passed days and nights in watching
for prey that defied his inexperience as
fisherman, as the bears had defied his lack
Of skill as a hunter.
Finally, supreme succor reached the fugi-
tives one evening in the shape of two old
TchOuktchis, male and female. Suffering
from hunger and thirst-for thirst is as i'm
periOus and difficult to satisfy in these des-
ertS of snow as it can be in those deserts
where the sun scorches the sands-they had
come from the Bay of Tchaounsk and were
going along the coast in search of a station
of natives, there to beg for some provisions
They had perceived the smoke escaping
from the roof Of the hut and had come to ask
for hospitality.
corona !" said they, in one voice. as they
entered. This meant good evening.
YegOr regretted the absence. of his faith
full Tekel, who knew a little of the Ian
guage of the Tchouktchis, and answered at
random:
''TorOma!" ..u
From their miserable looks more than
their gestures, the fugitives understood
what they wanted, and although the sup
ply of provisions was approaching the
end, the two poor wretches had for supper
enough to furnish the two meals of the
next day, and that succeeding, for their APP
petites seemed immense their hunger in
satiable.
The type of these natives recalled the
Monaghan type Of the old world combined
with the type of the Indians of the north OF
America-of Behring's Strait field of solid
ice for part of the year serving as a bond
of union between the two races as between
the two continents.
The man wore several reindeer skin
blouses; his head was covered with hairy
hood which also covered his shoulders be-
meath his outside garment. His shoes were
made of bear skin with the hair on the ex-
terror. His wife, VINO was covered with a
number Of tunics, tied at the hem so as to
form pantaloons and with sleeves open at
the wrists, had her face tattooed with stripes
Of dark blue. ..,
Despite the hunger which tortured him,
the TchOuktchis seemed deeply impressed
by Nadege's beauty which was altogether
new to him. He could not take from her
examined her, he entered into talk with
his wife in which the word kamal1ay was
often repeated. CA kamakay is a chief of
tribe.)
Then, after having noticed M. Laf1eur's
haIpoon in a corner, the Tchouktchi seem
ed astonished that he had not been given
slices of seal fat to eat NJ. Lafeur made
him understand by gestures that he mad
tO ~ MI scale h1t
At this, the native, designating himself by
striking his chest and pointing to the har-
pooh and dogs, promised to give, as soon as
day dawned, a lesson to the Partisan whom
he took for Russian.
The next day, in fact, the native was not
long in harpooning seal. Guided by the
dogs, he reached a breathing hole of these
creatures. Then, he sounded the snow with
the harpoon to the depth of two or three
feet; for the seal cuts its breathing mole
through the ice, but stops at the coating of
snow The little opening found, the fisher
man waited patiently and in silence until
the seal came to breathe the air. At the
second or third breath, the harpoon. swiftly
penetrating the snow, plunged into the head
of the animal
The seal dived, and drew out to it's full
length the line prepared in advance, which
was fifteen yards long. This line is fasten-
ed to the iron of the harpoon and the other
extremity is in the hand of the harpooner.
The breathing-hole of the seal, Immediately
cleared of the snow which covered it, was
enlarged so as to permit the passage of the
| body of the animal when it should become
exhausted. The native speedily drew the
seal from the hole and carried it to their
| hut.
| There, after the lesson in fishing, took
| place the lesson in cooking
! While the man cut up the seal, the woman,
| in order to be useful, made oil for the lamp
! by chewing pieces of the fat of the animal.
! She toiled so arduously at her singular work
that she soon filled a wooden jar with oil of
| her manufacture
The seal cut up, the native, by way of
example, stretched himself upon his back
| to be fed by his wife with pieces Of the fat,
which she stuffed in his mouth as one stuffs
| a chicken.
Its all over,n cried M. Lafleur, after par
taking Of the seal fat. ''You no longer need
be uneasy about my food, my friends. AS
long as thee are ice and seals, shall not be
burden to you and will abandon to you my
share Of everything else3" t...
Yermac, who had allowed to be piled up
| before him seal steaks raw liver, and slices
| of fat hesitated what to do. He had not
tasted Of the deer strangled by Wab. and
| for very many days his food had been ter
ribly lacking both in quality and quantity.
| At length, he decided TO taste the seal
flesh, and followed the example Of the Paris
ian. ....