couple of vacant cabins on the
Neukluk, free to all transients. High up on the banks, extending
frequently back upon the flats, the willows and brush, and sometimes the
small spruce timber, lay bent and crushed to the surface, shredded and
skinned, almost machine-like, by the ice-jam which, not long before, had
roared and swept down the streams to the bay. Old landmarks in a new
country continually presented themselves, recalling vividly the
experiences of the summer before and the companions who had shared them
in the "mush" up the rivers to Council--"rivers" then by courtesy only.

The origin and derivation of the word "mush" have been given heretofore,
but will bear further reference. It is perhaps the most frequently used
word in northwestern Alaska, being universally employed for "walk,"
"tramp," "travel," etc.; and in view of the generally prevailing
conditions of snow, rain, muck, mud, and moss, the student of philology
may find in this expressive word a rare and precious instance of
onomatopoeia. This little digression in the narrative has not been
made chiefly for the purpose of exhibiting familiarity with Greek, but
rather as an introduction for modestly recording a compliment which is
treasured by the narrator. Perhaps it wasn't known that I had been
through that sort of thing before, only more so, and perhaps, being
built on a fairly long and economical plan, I had a peculiar advantage
in that kind of travel, but, at any rate, I felt that I had received a
very high compliment, delicately expressed, when an old-timer in the
party, with unnecessary calls on the Almighty, told me that I was a
"musher from hell."

At nine o'clock at night we climbed the steep, slippery, slimy bank to
the two cabins which constituted Johnson's Camp, to find the one
apparently inhabitable cabin already occupied by four as tough-looking
specimens of humanity as ever came down the Yukon. But that didn't make
any difference, except that they had a first lien on the soft spots of
the floor to the extent of four times six feet by two. They had a
cheerful, warm fire cracking in the stove, the floor was dry, and the
outlook for a good rest was excellent. But it was not thus to be.
Thirteen in the cabin taxed its capacity. Another party who sought the
same shelter, blocked at the entrance by a full house and a stony stare,
departed. The cooking began to mess things, and the carelessness and
profuseness of the gentlemen's expectoration,-