After making sure that the great bear was dead, the three hunters lighted some torches which they had not thought of before and explored the cave. They felt quite sure that the mate of this bear was the one that Eiseeyou had killed on the musk ox hunt.
What they found in the cave confirmed this view. The cave was not quite empty, but it was a safe place for three well-armed men. At the farther end of the cave they found the bear's bed and a white cub lying dead in it, one of the stray bullets which they had fired before entering the cave having struck him.
A bear family nearly always consists of two cubs. For several minutes they could not find the cub's brother. But they finally heard a pitiful whimpering in a dark corner of the cave and discovered him hiding there. He was trembling and whimpering and very fearful.
So Eiseeyou went outside and brought in his sleeping bag and put the cub in it. That night he slept in the same bag with the mighty hunter, although it cramped him some.
The following day they took him back to Eskimo Town, where he became the friend and pet of all the children, and as much a part of the life of the village as any person in the community. Not only that, but he finally became famous all along the coast.
CHAPTER VIII
WHITIE AND LITTLE OUMAUK
It was a very jubilant hunting party that returned to Eskimo Town that night. The komatiks were loaded with five hundred pounds of bear meat, which makes a fine variation in the menu of the poor Eskimo. Besides that, the great, white robe of the Czarina was an important part of the kill; not to mention the fat Nik-Suk, who is always welcomed with joy in the igloo.