Page:The open Polar Sea- a narrative of a voyage of discovery towards the North pole, in the schooner "United States" (IA openpolarseanarr1867haye).pdf/240

 out, I had him caught and put into a large box on the deck; but this seemed rather to aggravate than to soothe the violence of the symptoms. He tore the boards with indescribable fierceness, and, getting his teeth into a crack, ripped off splinter after splinter until he had made a hole almost large enough for his head, when I ordered him to be shot. At this moment his eyes were like balls of fire; he had broken off one of his tusks, and his mouth was spouting blood. Soon afterward another fine animal, which seemed to be perfectly well a few moments before, suddenly sprang up, dashed off with a wild yell, wheeled round the harbor, returned to the vessel, and there fell struggling in a fit. I had him tied, but he tore himself loose, and, fearful for the other dogs, he too was killed. Three others died the same day, and the deaths during the first two weeks of December were eighteen. This, with the losses before sustained, left me with only twelve animals. One week later these were reduced to nine.

The serious nature of this disaster will perhaps not at first be apparent to the reader. It will be remembered, however, that my plans of exploration for the coming spring were mainly based upon dogs as a means of transportation across the ice; and now that my teams were so much reduced (and it seemed, indeed, likely that they would all die) it became very evident that, unless I should be able to supply the loss, all of my plans would be rendered abortive.

My anxiety was fully shared by Mr. Sonntag. Having failed in all of our efforts to arrest the fatal tendency of the malady, we could only occupy ourselves with devising ways and means for remedying, in some degree, the evil, or to arrange new plans in conformity with our changed circumstances.