“It’s Moonshine Sam!” Dick exclaimed to Sandy, who had joined him at the igloo door.
Moonshine Sam it was who staggered up to the boys and threw himself upon his face in the snow, his companion dropping to his side.
“I’m givin’ up,” moaned Moonshine Sam to the boys as they bent over him. “I’d rather let the law do its worst than stay in this hell-hole any longer.”
Dick and Sandy dragged the two outlaws into their igloo, one by one, putting on some tea for them. They could not bear to see even those hardened criminals suffer.
Inside, they found both the half-breed’s hands frozen as hard as stones. Moonshine Sam’s left foot was frozen just as bad, and both men’s faces were black. The hot tea and warmth of the igloo made the men delirious, and Moonshine Sam especially, babbled ceaselessly.
“It’ll git ye! It’ll git ye!” he repeated many times, writhing with pain.
“What?” Dick asked the outlaw solemnly.
“Har! Har!” the man laughed madly. “Out there, fool!” he cried. “The white things! Mistak an’ the north!”
Both Dick and Sandy did their best to quiet the raving outlaw, but to no avail. One moment he was cursing everything alive, and swearing to kill all the mounted police in Canada; the next moment he became as fearful as a child.
“Ye’ll save me from him,” he clutched at Dick with clawing fingers. “Ye won’t let the ‘white Eskimo’ git me,” he mumbled.