stefansson-wrangel-09-32-094v

388 THE ADVENTURE OF WRANGEL ISLAND

and all have, excepting Galle, a pair of skin mittens apiece. For
the last two days the female has absolutely refused to make a pair
of mitts for Galle and to-night she goes to bed supperless. A few
minutes ago Galle caught her stealing some hard bread and I
refused to let her eat it. She is certainly a trial to one’s patience.”
November 30th, “Galle went to his traps but got nothing. He
returned to camp just a few minutes before I did and found the
native woman just leaving camp. She had with her a heavy woolen
shirt-waist that she had brought from Nome. She told Galle that
she was going to the mountains. Of course, he told her to remain
at camp. She also stated to Galle that she would not go to the
other camp again.”

It is to be inferred from the diary that although they were
going through the form of keeping Ada Blackjack on short rations,
it was form only—she ate what she wanted daytimes when the
men were away and sometimes she got up to eat at night. Most
of the time the “short rations” therefore meant only that she did
not have her meals with the others. This is brought out definitely
in the entry for December 1st: “As I was leaving camp this morn-
ing the woman had to be forcibly thrown off the sled, altho
yesterday she stated that she would not go to the other camp again.
She still refuses to work and therefore is going without meals,
altho Galle and I know that she has all she wants to eat while
we are gone.” December 2nd, “The woman just sits and mopes and
still refuses to do anything.” December 3rd, “The woman is still
moping. Will not answer us when we speak to her.” December
4th, “The female is still moping, and I endeavored in vain to-day
to find the reason.” December 5th, “Nothing but mopes from the
woman.” December 6th, “No change in the female.” December
7th, “No change in the ‘Seamstress’.”

The entry for December 11th is incomplete. The bottom por-
tion of the page, consisting of about five lines, was torn out of the
diary by Mr. Noice and was among the other pages which he
eventually returned to Mr. Knight. However, the entry for that
day did not end with the portion torn off but ran over to the next
page and here Mr. Noice has erased the first line. We quote the
entry as we have it, showing the break that comes where the line
has been erased. “We still refuse to give the woman a thing to eat.