THE WORLD OF ICE. 143

looked over his shoulder with a quiet smile on his
oily countenance.

“Ah, then, ye may laugh,” said O'Riley with menac-
ing look, “but av ye break a bone o’ me body T’1l—”

Down went the dogs into a crack in the ice as he
spoke, over went the sledge and hurled them all out
upon the ice.

“ Musha! but ye’ve done it!”

“Hallo, West! are you hurt ?” cried Fred anxiously,
as he observed the sailor fall heavily on the ice.

“Oh no, sir; all right, thank you,’ replied the man,
rising alertly and limping to the sledge. “Only
knocked the skin off my shin, sir.”

West was a quiet, serious, polite man, an American by
birth, who was much liked by the erew in consequence
of a union of politeness and modesty with a disposition
to work far beyond his strength. He was not very
robust, however, and in powers of physical endurance
scarcely fitted to engage in an Arctic expedition.

“ An’ don’t ye think it’s worth makin’ inquiries
about me?” cried O’Riley, who had been tossed into
a crevice in the hummock, where he lay jammed and
utterly unabie to move.

Fred and the Esquimau laughed heartily while
O'Riley extricated himself from his awkward position.
Fortunately no damage was done, and in five minutes
they were flying over the frozen sea as madly as ever
in the direction of the point at the opposite side of
Red-Snow Valley, where a cloud of frost-smoke in-
dicated open water.