man. That was the last he saw of the man in the red sweater, and as
Curly and he looked at receding Seattle from the deck of the _Narwhal_,
it was the last he saw of the warm Southland. Curly and he were taken
below by Perrault and turned over to a black-faced giant called
Francois. Perrault was a French-Canadian, and swarthy; but Francois was
a French-Canadian half-breed, and twice as swarthy. They were a new
kind of men to Buck (of which he was destined to see many more), and
while he developed no affection for them, he none the less grew
honestly to respect them. He speedily learned that Perrault and
Francois were fair men, calm and impartial in administering justice,
and too wise in the way of dogs to be fooled by dogs.
In the tween-decks of the _Narwhal_, Buck and Curly joined two other
dogs. One of them was a big, snow-white fellow from Spitzbergen who had
been brought away by a whaling captain, and who had later accompanied a
Geological Survey into the Barrens. He was friendly, in a treacherous
sort of way, smiling into one s face the while he meditated some
underhand trick, as, for instance, when he stole from Buck s food at
the first meal. As Buck sprang to punish him, the lash of Francois s
whip sang through the air, reaching the culprit first; and nothing
remained to Buck but to recover the bone. That was fair of Francois, he
decided, and the half-breed began his rise in Buck s estimation.
The other dog made no advances, nor received any; also, he did not
attempt to steal from the newcomers. He was a gloomy, morose fellow,
and he showed Curly plainly that all he desired was to be left alone,
and further, that there would be trouble if he were not left alone.
Dave he was called, and he ate and slept, or yawned between times,
and took interest in nothing, not even when the _Narwhal_ crossed Queen
Charlotte Sound and rolled and pitched and bucked like a thing
possessed. When Buck and Curly grew excited, half wild with fear, he
raised his head as though annoyed, favored them with an incurious
glance, yawned, and went to sleep again.
Day and night the ship throbbed to the tireless pulse of the propeller,
and though one day was very like another, it was apparent to Buck that
the weather was steadily growing colder. At last, one morning, the
propeller was quiet, and the _Narwhal_ was pervaded with an atmosphere
of excitement. He felt it, as did the other dogs, and knew that a
change was at hand. Francois leashed them and brought them on deck. At
10