He would win out yet, and what a hero he would be in Eskimo Town!
First he fortified himself against the cold of the coming night by eating as much raw Omingmong as he could hold. Then he ate some snow to slake his thirst. So far so good, but how would he protect himself against the cold arctic night?
He got down on his knees and carefully examined the ground on which the white bear lay. Then he began digging the snow away from under him on the lee side with his hunting knife.
In half an hour he had excavated a hole large enough to admit his body. Then he crawled in, and with the same trusty knife scraped the snow over him, first pulling the long white pelage of the bear about him. Finally the friendly wind blew the snow over the place, entirely covering him and soon he was fairly warm. His broken arm pained him so he could not sleep soundly but he dozed the arctic night away in safety where his white brother would have died merely from the cold.
CHAPTER IV
RETURN OF THE HUNTING PARTY
Tunkine and Tukshu were not much worried about the absence of Eiseeyou until several hours after the vanishing of the arctic day. But when the hours dragged by until ten of them had passed and still he did not overtake them, they became anxious.
In the meantime they had camped and built a snow igloo and had made the three heavily loaded komatiks and the dog teams secure. It would be almost hopeless to return and try to find Eiseeyou in the darkness of the arctic night, although these Eskimos have a sort of cat eyesight and can see to hunt and kill game in the darkness where a white man cannot even find his way.