As we neared the climax of the winter the satisfactory progress of events became disturbed by a series of misfortunes which largely influenced the destinies of the expedition, and which, by disarranging all of my plans, caused me grave embarrassments.
AN EPIDEMIC AMONG THE DOGS.
In a former chapter I have mentioned that a disease had been, for several years, prevailing among the dogs of Southern Greenland, and that a large proportion of these useful animals had fallen victims to it. The cause of this disease had not been determined, but I was led to believe, from what information I could obtain, that it was purely of local origin, and that, therefore, when I had removed my teams from the seat of its influence I would be freed from its dangers. Under this impression I had consumed much time at the Danish-Esquimau settlements, in picking up here and there a dog, until I had obtained thirty-six animals. Up to the first of December they remained in perfect health; and, being fed upon an abundant allowance of fresh meat, I had great confidence that I should be able to carry them through to the spring, and, when the period of my sledge explorations should arrive, that I would have four strong and serviceable teams. My fears were for a time somewhat excited by the information received from Hans, that the Esquimaux of Whale Sound and vicinity, with whom he had been living, were heavy losers by the death of a great number of their dogs, and the description which he gave of this distemper corresponded with that of Southern Greenland; but November being passed without any symptoms of the malady having made its appearance in my splendid pack, I felt hopeful that they would escape the visitation. The loss which Dr. Kane had suffered by the death of his teams was fresh in my recollection; but for this there appeared to be a sufficient cause. Being almost wholly without fresh food of any kind, he was compelled to subsist his teams upon salt meats, which, giving scurvy to his men, could hardly be expected to act otherwise than injuriously upon the dogs, which had always before been used to a fresh diet of seal meat.
My hopeful anticipations were, however, not realized. One day early in December Jensen reported to me that one of the finest animals had been attacked with the disease, and recommended that it should be shot, to prevent the disease spreading; and this was accordingly done. A few hours afterwards another one was seized in the same manner. The symptoms were at first those of great restlessness. The animal ran several times around the ship, first one way and then the other, with a vague uncertainty in its gait, and with an alternate raising and lowering of the head and tail, every movement indicative of great nervous excitement. After a while it started off toward the mouth of the harbor, barking all the while and seeming to be in mortal dread of some imaginary object from which it was endeavoring to fly. In a little while it came back, still more excited than before. These symptoms rapidly increased in violence, the eyes became bloodshot, froth ran from the mouth, and the dog became possessed of an apparently uncontrollable desire to snap at every thing which came in its way.
The disease ran its course in a few hours. Weakness and prostration followed the excitement, and the poor animal staggered around the vessel, apparently unable to see its way, and finally fell over in a fit. After struggling for a little while in the snow, consciousness returned, and it got again upon its feet. Another fit followed soon afterward; and then they came one after another in rapid succession, until finally its misery was relieved by death, which occurred in less than twenty-four hours from the incipience of the attack. Meanwhile I had watched it closely, hoping to discover some clew to the cause, and to establish a cure. But I could obtain no light whatever. Dissection revealed nothing. There was no apparent inflammation either of the brain, the nerve centres, the spinal cord, or the nerves themselves; and I was wholly at a loss to understand the strange phenomenon. That it was not hydrophobia was shown by the fact that the animal rather desired than shunned water. Many of the symptoms attending that disease were, however, manifested; but it did not, like hydrophobia, appear to be communicated by the bite; for those dogs which happened to be bitten were not more speedily attacked than the others.
GREAT MORTALITY OF DOGS.
This case had scarcely reached its fatal termination before another was reported, and it was relieved of its misery by a bullet. Seven died during four days, and I saw with consternation my fine teams melting away and my hopes endangered; and while this was in progress I could only look on and wonder and experiment, but could never stop the contagion nor arrest the evil.
Among the first dogs attacked was a superb beast that I have before named. He was the best draught animal of my best team, the second leader,—Karsuk. I have never seen such expression of ferocity and mad strength exhibited by any living creature, as he manifested two hours after the first symptoms were observed. Thinking that confinement might do good, and desiring to see if the disease would not wear itself out, I had him caught and put into a large box on the deck; but this seemed rather to aggravate than to soothe the violence of the symptoms. He tore the boards with indescribable fierceness, and, getting his teeth into a crack, ripped off splinter after splinter until he had made a hole almost large enough for his head, when I ordered him to be shot. At this moment his eyes were like balls of fire; he had broken off one of his tusks, and his mouth was spouting blood. Soon afterward another fine animal, which seemed to be perfectly well a few moments before, suddenly sprang up, dashed off with a wild yell, wheeled round the harbor, returned to the vessel, and there fell struggling in a fit. I had him tied, but he tore himself loose, and, fearful for the other dogs, he too was killed. Three others died the same day, and the deaths during the first two weeks of December were eighteen. This, with the losses before sustained, left me with only twelve animals. One week later these were reduced to nine.
ONLY ONE TEAM LEFT.
The serious nature of this disaster will perhaps not at first be apparent to the reader. It will be remembered, however, that my plans of exploration for the coming spring were mainly based upon dogs as a means of transportation across the ice; and now that my teams were so much reduced (and it seemed, indeed, likely that they would all die) it became very evident that, unless I should be able to supply the loss, all of my plans would be rendered abortive.