Page:Polar Exploration - Bruce - 1911.djvu/128

124 thus in wait. Presently a young loom accompanied by its mother came flying down from the rocky cliffs above, and fell short of the sea. The devoted mother landed near by to urge its young on to the sea and safety, but the nearest fox, swift as lightning, in bee-line, head down, eyes absolutely fixed on the old bird, made a rush on its desired prey. Both fox and loom were out of range of my gun, but, instinctively wishing to succour the weaker one, I ran towards the spot where I thought they would meet and at long range fired just too late, the fox dropping to my shot in the very act of plunging its teeth in the loom's neck. The swiftness of the whole act was the remarkable feature of this striking scene.

Speaking of lemmings (Myodes torquatus) in Grinnell Land, Admiral Markham says, "These little mouselike creatures are the smallest yet the most numerous and common of all quadrupeds in the Arctic Regions. They are extremely pugnacious and fearless, and often attract attention, when they would otherwise be unobserved, by their shrill cries of rage at an approaching step. They hibernate in burrows under the snow, and live during the summer on the scant vegetation of these regions." With epicurean satisfaction the explorer further narrates, "When roasted and served up on toast, like sparrows, they