Koona,
which is the Cree for "snow," and was very appropriate, as the animal
was of the purest white.

Taking the dog into the canoe with them, and giving all necessary
directions, they soon were gliding along the coast of the great bay.
Numerous flocks of ducks flew over their heads; and far away in the
distance the water seemed almost alive with the numbers of them on the
dancing, sparkling waves. This latter sight seemed to be what the old
hunter was looking for, and so the canoe was quickly paddled ashore and
carried up on the beach. There he carefully guided the party along.
They had to cautiously creep behind some low, dense willow bushes that
grew on the shore, with only a broad fringe of white sand between them
and the waters.

Each boy, with his gun and ammunition, was now assigned his post behind
a clump of bushes and given his final instructions. They were full of
excitement and curiosity, and wondered how it was going to be possible
for them to reach with ordinary guns the ducks, which were carelessly
swimming in multitudes some hundreds of yards out from the shore. But
they had not long to wait or conjecture. When the old Indian had seen
that all were in their right places he gave a low whistle, which was
more like the call of a sea bird than a human voice. So natural was it
to a bird call that no bird around was startled by it; but the well-
trained Koona, who had been left by the boat, fully knew its meaning,
and now began his sagacious work. Like a little white arctic fox he
was, and like one be began his antics on the shore. He frisked and
danced around along the sand playing all sorts of antics. He walked on
his hind feet, turned somersaults in quick succession, and acted as
though possessed with perpetual motion, but not one yelp or bark or any
sound did he utter.

A stranger would have imagined that his appearance and actions would
have driven all the ducks that were near enough to the shore to observe
him and his antics farther out to sea. But just the reverse happened.
A spirit of curiosity seemed to possess those nearest the shore, and as
they began to swim in closer and closer, their movements influenced
those farther out, until hundreds of splendid ducks were soon swimming
nearer and nearer the sandy beach, on which the cunning dog kept up his
unceasing and varied movements. At first he had kept at some distance
from the sands, back of which grew the clumps of willows behind which