as neither Rob nor Jesse was in very good condition to
do much work. At last, however, they saw their new barabbara completed.
It could hardly be seen from the opposite side of the creek, and any one
passing the mouth of the creek on the bay would never have detected it
at all.

Tired by their labors, they lay down on the grass in front and looked at
their structure. "I'll tell you," said John, rubbing his dirty hands
over his face to wipe the perspiration from his eyes; "we'll call this
'Cripples' Castle.' I don't think it's bad for the time we have put in,
when there wasn't one of us feeling very well. But Rob's hand is pretty
near well now, and Jesse's foot is getting better, and my nose is not
going to come off, after all. We'll call it 'Cripples' Castle,' but hope
that our luck will be better in it."

"Come on, let's go inside," said Jesse. So they crawled into the ragged
hole in the wall which they had left for a door. They found the interior
spacious enough for their needs, and the roof in the centre was
stronger than that of their old barabbara. They got some firewood
together, and with Skookie's help piled the floor under the eaves thick
with sweet-smelling grasses from the flats near by. That night, when the
Alaska sun gradually retired for its short rest, they sat around a
brightly burning fire in the interior of their castle and ate the
heartiest meal they had known for some time. It was then that Rob
produced a surprise for the others.

"Now we have got some of our old dried bear meat," said he. "I suppose
it's good, but it doesn't look it now--and a little salt whale and
plenty of fresh codfish and salmon; and Skookie has got some of those
white mock radishes of his, of which we don't know the name. But it
seems to me that everything runs to meat. How would you like to have
some onions?"

"Onions!" exclaimed Jesse; and "Onions!" repeated John after him.
"Nothing would be better, but we haven't got any."

Rob produced from behind his back a small sack which they found
contained a few of these precious bulbs, most valued of almost any
vegetable in the far north.

"Where did you get those?" asked John. "They certainly didn't grow
here."

"No," said Rob; "I found this little sack hidden back under the
_klipsies_ in the far end of the old barabbara up there. I suppose some
native hid it there when they came down in the bay after their whale.
Anyhow, we have been on meat diet so long that I will take t