The prisoner was lifted and the thongs which bound his feet being severed he was commanded to stand up.
Then the Esquimau chief said, in broken English:
“White man mebbe live. He gib Eskimo man more gun and more fire dust. See?”
The professor grasped the situation.
“All right,” he said; “let me go and I’ll get the guns for you.”
But the chief smiled in a leering way.
“Eskimo no fool! White man go, mebbe stay. No come back, Eskimo be big fool.”
“Well, then, how am I to get the guns for you?” argued the professor.
“Mebbe see.”
The chief beckoned to one of the tribe, a muscular fellow, who came forward.