David goes to Greenland

by David Binney Putnam

We went over to the island in our launch with the Governor and a couple of Eskimos carrying the food. When they saw us coming [[54]]the dogs, about a dozen in number, crowded down to the shore and followed along as we went by, yelping and barking crazily. They knew it was dinner time.

We landed and decided to give them the birds up a bit from the water, where it was more level and Kellerman could get movies better. As the Eskimos carried up a big basket of the birds, one of them had to keep the dogs off the man with the basket. He used an oar and beat them. And at that they jumped up and tried to get at the basket of meat on the man’s shoulder whenever they got the slightest chance. I don’t doubt they would have knocked him down if he had been alone.

Then the birds were thrown out to the dogs, a few at a time. In a second they were torn to pieces and gobbled up. A dog will rip one up in a flash and choke down everything but the feathers. There were many fights. And all the time there was a great racket, [[55]]with the dogs howling and barking and yapping at each other.

It was very interesting to see the King Dog. Each team up in this country has a head dog, the King, who is boss. He is usually the heaviest and best looking dog, and certainly is the best fighter. I believe he just fights his way up to the leadership. Certainly when he “says” anything to one of the others, they do what they are told pretty quickly. Or else they get a licking.

The King has a queen, and it is fun to see the way he looks out for her. When the Queen got a duck or part of one, the King just sort of looked on and saw to it that no other dog interfered. If one of them got excited and started to move in on the Queen and her dinner, the King gave a growl—and that ended it. Or if another dog had a bit of duck, and the King came along, the other fellow just dropped what he had, perhaps running off or sort of turning over on his back [[56]]and grovelling on the ground. There certainly was discipline on that island.

When it was all over there was just a few feathers scattered around on the rocks and the dogs were mostly with bloody mouths and heads where they had torn up the meat. Anyway, they all seemed to have had a good meal and for the first time settled down quietly, to wait for the next dinner time three days later. In the winter they have their work, and lots of it, and of course they are awfully important in the life of the northern people. There are no horses and of course no automobiles or anything like that. So everything is drawn on sleds, and the sleds are moved by dogs.

The King Dog of Governor Otto’s Team, with His Queen.

The dog skins are especially fine. The fur is heavy and soft and glossy. Dad bought some dog skins to have a coat made.

That afternoon we left Upernivik to go north across Melville Bay. Everyone was on hand to see us off and the Governor fired [[57]]the little cannon up on the hill where they had the Danish flag hoisted. They gave us a salute of three guns and we answered with three shots from a rifle.