ished bright with sand, and
then applied a coating of seal oil. Finally the harness and long
sealskin traces were examined, and all was ready.

It was the end of November when the Bay froze, but there was no
certainty that travelling would be safe upon the sea ice beyond Fort
Pelican before the beginning of January. Therefore Doctor Joe confined
his visits to the Bay folk during December, and on his first tour Andy
served as driver with Jamie as passenger.

The dogs were harnessed after the Eskimo fashion. That is to say, "fan
shape," and not, as is customary in Alaska and among white men of the
far northwest, in tandem.

Leading from the komatik (sledge) in front was a single thong of
sealskin with a loop on its end. This was called the "bridle." Each
dog had an individual trace, its end passed through the loop in the
bridle and securely tied. Tinker, the leading dog, was fully
thirty-five feet from the komatik when his trace was stretched to its
full length. He had the longest trace of all. He was trained to
respond to shouted directions, turning to the right when "ouk" was
called, or left for "rudder," the word being repeated several times by
the driver in rapid succession. When it was desired that the dogs
should stop, "ah" was the order, and when they were to go forward
"ooisht," or "oksuit." The other dogs followed Tinker as a pack of
wolves follows the leader. The two dogs directly behind Tinker had
traces of equal length, but somewhat shorter, the pair behind them
still shorter, and so on to the last pair.

A long whip was used to keep them in subjection. This was of braided
walrus hide an inch thick at its butt and tapering to a thin lash. To
the butt was attached a short wooden handle a foot in length, to which
was fastened a loop which was hooked over the protruding end of the
forward cross-bar and the whip permitted to trail upon the ice when
not in use, and at the same time it was always within the driver's
reach.

The boys had practised the manipulation of the whip all their lives.
They could flick a square inch of ice at thirty feet with its tip. It
was capable of a gentle tap, or the force of a pistol shot, at its
wielder's discretion. The whip was the terror of the team, for even at
his distance Tinker, the leader, could be brought to account if he
failed to do his duty or obey commands.

There was little sickness in the Bay, and after patching up a
lumberman at Grampus River, and providing some