the first step upon the cold surface, Buck s feet sank into a white
mushy something very like mud. He sprang back with a snort. More of
this white stuff was falling through the air. He shook himself, but
more of it fell upon him. He sniffed it curiously, then licked some up
on his tongue. It bit like fire, and the next instant was gone. This
puzzled him. He tried it again, with the same result. The onlookers
laughed uproariously, and he felt ashamed, he knew not why, for it was
his first snow.
Chapter II. The Law of Club and Fang
Buck s first day on the Dyea beach was like a nightmare. Every hour was
filled with shock and surprise. He had been suddenly jerked from the
heart of civilization and flung into the heart of things primordial. No
lazy, sun-kissed life was this, with nothing to do but loaf and be
bored. Here was neither peace, nor rest, nor a moment s safety. All was
confusion and action, and every moment life and limb were in peril.
There was imperative need to be constantly alert; for these dogs and
men were not town dogs and men. They were savages, all of them, who
knew no law but the law of club and fang.
He had never seen dogs fight as these wolfish creatures fought, and his
first experience taught him an unforgetable lesson. It is true, it was
a vicarious experience, else he would not have lived to profit by it.
Curly was the victim. They were camped near the log store, where she,
in her friendly way, made advances to a husky dog the size of a
full-grown wolf, though not half so large as she. There was no warning,
only a leap in like a flash, a metallic clip of teeth, a leap out
equally swift, and Curly s face was ripped open from eye to jaw.
It was the wolf manner of fighting, to strike and leap away; but there
was more to it than this. Thirty or forty huskies ran to the spot and
surrounded the combatants in an intent and silent circle. Buck did not
comprehend that silent intentness, nor the eager way with which they
were licking their chops. Curly rushed her antagonist, who struck again
and leaped aside. He met her next rush with his chest, in a peculiar
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