Growls and barks were heard in a fearful chorus. In the fog it sounded
like an immense humming in a wadded room. Some struggle was evidently
going on.

"Dick! Dick!" cried the captain, re-entering the frost-rime.

"Wait a minute, Hatteras; I believe the fog is clearing off," called
out the doctor. So it was, but lowering like the waters of a pond
that is being emptied; it seemed to enter the ground from whence it
sprang; the shining summits of the icebergs grew above it; others,
submerged till then, came out like new islands; by an optical illusion
the travellers seemed to be mounting with their icebergs above the
fog. Soon the top of the sledge appeared, then the dogs, then about
thirty other animals, then enormous moving masses, and Dick jumping
about in and out of the fog.

"Foxes!" cried Bell.

"Bears!" shouted the doctor. "Five!"

"Our dogs! Our provisions!" cried Simpson. A band of foxes and bears
had attacked the sledge, and were making havoc with the provisions.
The instinct of pillage made them agree; the dogs barked furiously,
but the herd took no notice, and the scene of destruction was
lamentable.

"Fire!" cried the captain, discharging his gun. His companions
imitated him. Upon hearing the quadruple detonation the bears raised
their heads, and with a comical growl gave the signal for departure;
they went faster than a horse could gallop, and, followed by the herd
of foxes, soon disappeared amongst the northern icebergs.

CHAPTER XXX

THE CAIRN

The frost-rime had lasted about three-quarters of an hour; quite long
enough for the bears and foxes to make away with a considerable
quantity of provisions which they attacked all the more greedily,
arriving, as they did, when the animals were perishing with hunger
from the long winter. They had torn open the covering of the sledge
with their enormous paws; the cases of pemmican were open, and
half-empty; the biscuit-bags pillaged, the provisions of tea spilt
over the snow, a barrel of spirits of wine broken up, and its precious
contents run out; the camping materials lying all about. The wild
animals had done their work.

"The devils have done for us!" said Bell.

"What shall we do now?" said Simpson.

"Let us first see how much we've lost," said the doctor; "we can talk
after."

Hatteras said nothing, but began picking up the scattered objects.
They picked up all the pemmican and biscuit that was still eatable.
The loss of so much sp