Call of the wild - Chapter2

He buckled down with a will and did his best, though it
was all new and strange.

When he saw Pike, one of the new dogs, a clever
malingerer and thief, slyly steal a slice of bacon when Perrault's back
was turned, he duplicated the performance the following day, getting
away with the whole chunk.

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.

Once, during a brief halt,
when he got tangled in the traces and delayed the start, both Dave and
Solleks flew at him and administered a sound trouncing.

They closed in upon her,
snarling and yelping, and she was buried, screaming with agony, beneath
the bristling mass of bodies.

The domesticated generations fell from him.

Listen to the short lecture on how to diagram a reading passage for meaning and understanding.
2.

They closed in upon her,
snarling and yelping, and she was buried, screaming with agony, beneath
the bristling mass of bodies.

Francois was stern, demanding instant
obedience, and by virtue of his whip receiving instant obedience; while
Dave, who was an experienced wheeler, nipped Buck's hind quarters
whenever he was in error.

Something wriggled under his feet.

And his
cadences were their cadences, the cadences which voiced their woe and
what to them was the meaning of the stiffness, and the cold, and dark.

They were savages, all of them, who knew
no law but the law of club and fang.

It was a harness, such as he had seen
the grooms put on the horses at home.

Spitz was the leader, likewise experienced,
and while he could not always get at Buck, he growled sharp reproof
now and again, or cunningly threw his weight in the traces to jerk Buck
into the way he should go.

They closed in upon her,
snarling and yelping, and she was buried, screaming with agony, beneath
the bristling mass of bodies.

Billee wagged his tail
appeasingly, turned to run when he saw that appeasement was of no
avail, and cried (still appeasingly) when Spitz's sharp teeth scored his
flank.

Billee's one
fault was his excessive good nature, while Joe was the very opposite,
sour and introspective, with a perpetual snarl and a malignant eye.

It was a token that he was harking back through his
own life to the lives of his forebears; for he was a civilized dog, an
unduly civilized dog, and of his own experience knew no trap and so
could not of himself fear it.

It marked his adaptability, his capacity to adjust himself to
changing conditions, the lack of which would have meant swift and
terrible death.

He had been suddenly jerked from the
heart of civilization and flung into the heart of things primordial.

Francois fastened upon him an
arrangement of straps and buckles.

It is true, it was a
vicarious experience, else he would not have lived to profit by it.

He had never seen dogs fight as these wolfish creatures fought, and his
first experience taught him an unforgettable lesson.

Once, during a brief halt,
when he got tangled in the traces and delayed the start, both Dave and
Solleks flew at him and administered a sound trouncing.

The tent, illumined
by a candle, glowed warmly in the midst of the white plain; and when
he, as a matter of course, entered it, both Perrault and Francois
bombarded him with curses and cooking utensils, till he recovered from
his consternation and fled ignominiously into the outer cold.

A whiff of
warm air ascended to his nostrils, and there, curled up under the snow in
a snug ball, lay Billee.

But no matter how Spitz circled, Joe whirled around on his heels
to face him, mane bristling, ears laid back, lips writhing and snarling,
jaws clipping together as fast as he could snap, and eyes diabolically
gleaming—the incarnation of belligerent fear.

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.

The domesticated generations fell from him.

The tent, illumined
by a candle, glowed warmly in the midst of the white plain; and when
he, as a matter of course, entered it, both Perrault and Francois
bombarded him with curses and cooking utensils, till he recovered from
his consternation and fled ignominiously into the outer cold.

The snow walls pressed him on every
side, and a great surge of fear swept through him—the fear of the wild
thing for the trap.

As Francois's whip backed him up, Buck found it to
be cheaper to mend his ways than to retaliate.

But she lay there limp and lifeless in the bloody, trampled
snow, almost literally torn to pieces, the swart half-breed standing over
her and cursing horribly.

It was a token that he was harking back through his
own life to the lives of his forebears; for he was a civilized dog, an
unduly civilized dog, and of his own experience knew no trap and so
could not of himself fear it.

Ere
they returned to camp he knew enough to stop at "ho," to go ahead at
"mush," to swing wide on the bends, and to keep clear of the wheeler
when the loaded sled shot downhill at their heels.

Buck was ravenous.

With drooping tail and shivering body, very forlorn indeed, he aimlessly
circled the tent.

So terrible was his
appearance that Spitz was forced to forego disciplining him; but to cover
his own discomfiture he turned upon the inoffensive and wailing Billee
and drove him to the confines of the camp.

A great uproar was raised, but he was
unsuspected; while Dub, an awkward blunderer who was always getting
caught, was punished for Buck's misdeed.

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.

Francois was stern, demanding instant
obedience, and by virtue of his whip receiving instant obedience; while
Dave, who was an experienced wheeler, nipped Buck's hind quarters
whenever he was in error.

Miserable and
disconsolate, he wandered about among the many tents, only to find that
one place was as cold as another.

Use the following diagramming format for your group story diagram:
comprehend that silent intentness, nor the eager way with which they
were licking their chops.

The day had been long and arduous, and he
slept soundly and comfortably, though he growled and barked and
wrestled with bad dreams.

Spitz was the leader, likewise experienced,
and while he could not always get at Buck, he growled sharp reproof
now and again, or cunningly threw his weight in the traces to jerk Buck
into the way he should go.

The pound and a half of sun-dried salmon,
which was his ration for each day, seemed to go nowhere.

His muscles became hard
as iron, and he grew callous to all ordinary pain.

A chill wind
was blowing that nipped him sharply and bit with especial venom into
his wounded shoulder.

A whiff of
warm air ascended to his nostrils, and there, curled up under the snow in
a snug ball, lay Billee.

So terrible was his
appearance that Spitz was forced to forego disciplining him; but to cover
his own discomfiture he turned upon the inoffensive and wailing Billee
and drove him to the confines of the camp.

But she lay there limp and lifeless in the bloody, trampled
snow, almost literally torn to pieces, the swart half-breed standing over
her and cursing horribly.

So sudden was it, and so unexpected, that Buck was taken aback.

It was a token that he was harking back through his
own life to the lives of his forebears; for he was a civilized dog, an
unduly civilized dog, and of his own experience knew no trap and so
could not of himself fear it.

He could eat anything, no matter how
loathsome or indigestible; and, once eaten, the juices of his stomach
extracted the last least particle of nutriment; and his blood carried it to
the farthest reaches of his body, building it into the toughest and stoutest
of tissues.

As courier for the Canadian Government,
bearing important dispatches, he was anxious to secure the best dogs,
and he was particularly gladdened by the possession of Buck.

In vague ways
he remembered back to the youth of the breed, to the time the wild dogs
ranged in packs through the primeval forest and killed their meat as they
ran it down.

The tent, illumined
by a candle, glowed warmly in the midst of the white plain; and when
he, as a matter of course, entered it, both Perrault and Francois
bombarded him with curses and cooking utensils, till he recovered from
his consternation and fled ignominiously into the outer cold.

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.

By evening Perrault secured another dog, an old husky, long and lean
and gaunt, with a battle-scarred face and a single eye which flashed a
warning of prowess that commanded respect.

But a friendly
little yelp reassured him, and he went back to investigate.

They quickened the old life within him, and the old tricks which they
had stamped into the heredity of the breed were his tricks.

But no matter how Spitz circled, Joe whirled around on his heels
to face him, mane bristling, ears laid back, lips writhing and snarling,
jaws clipping together as fast as he could snap, and eyes diabolically
gleaming—the incarnation of belligerent fear.

But no matter how Spitz circled, Joe whirled around on his heels
to face him, mane bristling, ears laid back, lips writhing and snarling,
jaws clipping together as fast as he could snap, and eyes diabolically
gleaming—the incarnation of belligerent fear.

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.

They were alert and active, anxious that the
work should go well, and fiercely irritable with whatever, by delay or
confusion, retarded that work.

Of this offense Buck was unwittingly
guilty, and the first knowledge he had of his indiscretion was when Solleks
whirled upon him and slashed his shoulder to the bone for three
inches up and down.

When he saw Pike, one of the new dogs, a clever
malingerer and thief, slyly steal a slice of bacon when Perrault's back
was turned, he duplicated the performance the following day, getting
away with the whole chunk.

Spitz was the leader, likewise experienced,
and while he could not always get at Buck, he growled sharp reproof
now and again, or cunningly threw his weight in the traces to jerk Buck
into the way he should go.

He had never seen dogs fight as these wolfish creatures fought, and his
first experience taught him an unforgettable lesson.

Suddenly the snow gave way beneath his fore legs and
he sank down.

There was imperative need to be constantly alert; for these dogs and men
were not town dogs and men.

Before he had recovered from the shock caused by the tragic passing of
Curly, he received another shock.

It was a token that he was harking back through his
own life to the lives of his forebears; for he was a civilized dog, an
unduly civilized dog, and of his own experience knew no trap and so
could not of himself fear it.

Buck learned easily, and under the combined
tuition of his two mates and Francois made remarkable progress.

Three more huskies were added to the team inside an hour, making a
total of nine, and before another quarter of an hour had passed they were
Page 5 of 8
in harness and swinging up the trail toward the Dyea Canon.

No matter how breathless the air when he dug his nest by
tree or bank, the wind that later blew inevitably found him to leeward,
sheltered and snug.

He was surprised at the eagerness which animated
the whole team and which was communicated to him; but still more
surprising was the change wrought in Dave and Sol-leks.

The resulting
tangle was even worse, but Buck took good care to keep the traces clear
thereafter; and ere the day was done, so well had he mastered his work,
his mates about ceased nagging him.

But no matter how Spitz circled, Joe whirled around on his heels
to face him, mane bristling, ears laid back, lips writhing and snarling,
jaws clipping together as fast as he could snap, and eyes diabolically
gleaming—the incarnation of belligerent fear.

The muscles of his whole body contracted
spasmodically and instinctively, the hair on his neck and shoulders stood
on end, and with a ferocious snarl he bounded straight up into the
blinding day, the snow flying about him in a flashing cloud.

The tent, illumined
by a candle, glowed warmly in the midst of the white plain; and when
he, as a matter of course, entered it, both Perrault and Francois
bombarded him with curses and cooking utensils, till he recovered from
his consternation and fled ignominiously into the outer cold.

So terrible was his
appearance that Spitz was forced to forego disciplining him; but to cover
his own discomfiture he turned upon the inoffensive and wailing Billee
and drove him to the confines of the camp.

Billee's one
fault was his excessive good nature, while Joe was the very opposite,
sour and introspective, with a perpetual snarl and a malignant eye.

But no matter how Spitz circled, Joe whirled around on his heels
to face him, mane bristling, ears laid back, lips writhing and snarling,
jaws clipping together as fast as he could snap, and eyes diabolically
gleaming—the incarnation of belligerent fear.

And
when, on the still cold nights, he pointed his nose at a star and howled
long and wolflike, it was his ancestors, dead and dust, pointing nose at
star and howling down through the centuries and through him.

Spitz was the leader, likewise experienced,
and while he could not always get at Buck, he growled sharp reproof
now and again, or cunningly threw his weight in the traces to jerk Buck
into the way he should go.

But no matter how Spitz circled, Joe whirled around on his heels
to face him, mane bristling, ears laid back, lips writhing and snarling,
jaws clipping together as fast as he could snap, and eyes diabolically
gleaming—the incarnation of belligerent fear.

The day had been long and arduous, and he
slept soundly and comfortably, though he growled and barked and
wrestled with bad dreams.

By afternoon, Perrault, who was in a hurry to be on the trail with his
dispatches, returned with two more dogs.

Sight and scent became remarkably keen, while his hearing
developed such acuteness that in his sleep he heard the faintest sound
and knew whether it heralded peace or peril.

The day had been long and arduous, and he
slept soundly and comfortably, though he growled and barked and
wrestled with bad dreams.

Before he had recovered from the shock caused by the tragic passing of
Curly, he received another shock.

Buck
received them in comradely fashion, Dave ignored them, while Spitz
proceeded to thrash first one and then the other.

He lay down on the snow and attempted to sleep,
but the frost soon drove him shivering to his feet.

It marked, further, the decay or going to pieces of his
moral nature, a vain thing and a handicap in the ruthless struggle for
existence.

They were alert and active, anxious that the
work should go well, and fiercely irritable with whatever, by delay or
confusion, retarded that work.

Francois was stern, demanding instant
obedience, and by virtue of his whip receiving instant obedience; while
Dave, who was an experienced wheeler, nipped Buck's hind quarters
whenever he was in error.

Billee's one
fault was his excessive good nature, while Joe was the very opposite,
sour and introspective, with a perpetual snarl and a malignant eye.

But she lay there limp and lifeless in the bloody, trampled
snow, almost literally torn to pieces, the swart half-breed standing over
her and cursing horribly.

Once, during a brief halt,
when he got tangled in the traces and delayed the start, both Dave and
Solleks flew at him and administered a sound trouncing.

They made good time down the chain of lakes which fills the
craters of extinct volcanoes, and late that night pulled into the huge
camp at the head of Lake Bennett, where thousands of goldseekers were
building boats against the break-up of the ice in the spring.

But no matter how Spitz circled, Joe whirled around on his heels
to face him, mane bristling, ears laid back, lips writhing and snarling,
jaws clipping together as fast as he could snap, and eyes diabolically
gleaming—the incarnation of belligerent fear.

In this manner had fought forgotten ancestors.

It marked, further, the decay or going to pieces of his
moral nature, a vain thing and a handicap in the ruthless struggle for
existence.

He was fit, that was all, and
unconsciously he accommodated himself to the new mode of life.

All was
confusion and action, and every moment life and limb were in peril.

But she lay there limp and lifeless in the bloody, trampled
snow, almost literally torn to pieces, the swart half-breed standing over
her and cursing horribly.

His most
conspicuous trait was an ability to scent the wind and forecast it a night
in advance.

Thirty or forty huskies ran to the spot and
surrounded the combatants in an intent and silent circle.

He met her next rush with his chest, in a peculiar
fashion that tumbled her off her feet.

Apt scholar that he was, they were equally apt
teachers, never allowing him to linger long in error, and enforcing their
teaching with their sharp teeth.

They made good time down the chain of lakes which fills the
craters of extinct volcanoes, and late that night pulled into the huge
camp at the head of Lake Bennett, where thousands of goldseekers were
building boats against the break-up of the ice in the spring.

They made good time down the chain of lakes which fills the
craters of extinct volcanoes, and late that night pulled into the huge
camp at the head of Lake Bennett, where thousands of goldseekers were
building boats against the break-up of the ice in the spring.

He did not like
to be approached on his blind side.

Buck did not
Page 2 of 8
Assignment instructions:
1.

It was a hard day's run, up the Canon, through Sheep Camp, past the
Scales and the timber line, across glaciers and snowdrifts hundreds of
feet deep, and over the great Chilcoot Divide, which stands between the
salt water and the fresh and guards forbiddingly the sad and lonely
North.

The muscles of his whole body contracted
spasmodically and instinctively, the hair on his neck and shoulders stood
on end, and with a ferocious snarl he bounded straight up into the
blinding day, the snow flying about him in a flashing cloud.

This first theft marked Buck as fit to survive in the hostile Northland
environment.

He whined placatingly, squirmed and wriggled to
show his good will and intentions, and even ventured, as a bribe for
peace, to lick Buck's face with his warm wet tongue.

A great uproar was raised, but he was
unsuspected; while Dub, an awkward blunderer who was always getting
caught, was punished for Buck's misdeed.

He did not steal for joy of it, but because of the clamor of his stomach.

By evening Perrault secured another dog, an old husky, long and lean
and gaunt, with a battle-scarred face and a single eye which flashed a
warning of prowess that commanded respect.

The muscles of his whole body contracted
spasmodically and instinctively, the hair on his neck and shoulders stood
on end, and with a ferocious snarl he bounded straight up into the
blinding day, the snow flying about him in a flashing cloud.

It was a token that he was harking back through his
own life to the lives of his forebears; for he was a civilized dog, an
unduly civilized dog, and of his own experience knew no trap and so
could not of himself fear it.

There was imperative need to be constantly alert; for these dogs and men
were not town dogs and men.

Thirty or forty huskies ran to the spot and
surrounded the combatants in an intent and silent circle.

A great uproar was raised, but he was
unsuspected; while Dub, an awkward blunderer who was always getting
caught, was punished for Buck's misdeed.

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.

Two
minutes from the time Curly went down, the last of her assailants were
clubbed off.

Listen to the short lecture on how to diagram a reading passage for meaning and understanding.
2.

Once, during a brief halt,
when he got tangled in the traces and delayed the start, both Dave and
Solleks flew at him and administered a sound trouncing.

The pound and a half of sun-dried salmon,
which was his ration for each day, seemed to go nowhere.

The tent, illumined
by a candle, glowed warmly in the midst of the white plain; and when
he, as a matter of course, entered it, both Perrault and Francois
bombarded him with curses and cooking utensils, till he recovered from
his consternation and fled ignominiously into the outer cold.

As courier for the Canadian Government,
bearing important dispatches, he was anxious to secure the best dogs,
and he was particularly gladdened by the possession of Buck.

By evening Perrault secured another dog, an old husky, long and lean
and gaunt, with a battle-scarred face and a single eye which flashed a
warning of prowess that commanded respect.

The toil of the traces seemed the supreme
expression of their being, and all that they lived for and the only thing in
which they took delight.

He
saw Spitz run out his scarlet tongue in a way he had of laughing; and he
saw Francois, swinging an axe, spring into the mess of dogs.

When he saw Pike, one of the new dogs, a clever
malingerer and thief, slyly steal a slice of bacon when Perrault's back
was turned, he duplicated the performance the following day, getting
away with the whole chunk.

With drooping tail and shivering body, very forlorn indeed, he aimlessly
circled the tent.

He had been suddenly jerked from the
heart of civilization and flung into the heart of things primordial.

A chill wind
was blowing that nipped him sharply and bit with especial venom into
his wounded shoulder.

Buck confidently
selected a spot, and with much fuss and waste effort proceeded to dig a
hole for himself.

This first theft marked Buck as fit to survive in the hostile Northland
environment.

Curly rushed her antagonist, who struck again
and leaped aside.

Spitz was the leader, likewise experienced,
and while he could not always get at Buck, he growled sharp reproof
now and again, or cunningly threw his weight in the traces to jerk Buck
into the way he should go.

Ere
they returned to camp he knew enough to stop at "ho," to go ahead at
"mush," to swing wide on the bends, and to keep clear of the wheeler
when the loaded sled shot downhill at their heels.

And as he had seen horses work,
so he was set to work, hauling Francois on a sled to the forest that
fringed the valley, and returning with a load of firewood.

But a friendly
little yelp reassured him, and he went back to investigate.

It was all well enough in the Southland, under the law of love
and fellowship, to respect private property and personal feelings; but in
the Northland, under the law of club and fang, whoso took such things
into account was a fool, and in so far as he observed them he would fail
to prosper.

Apt scholar that he was, they were equally apt
teachers, never allowing him to linger long in error, and enforcing their
teaching with their sharp teeth.

Every hour was
filled with shock and surprise.

But she lay there limp and lifeless in the bloody, trampled
snow, almost literally torn to pieces, the swart half-breed standing over
her and cursing horribly.

Buck
received them in comradely fashion, Dave ignored them, while Spitz
proceeded to thrash first one and then the other.

But no matter how Spitz circled, Joe whirled around on his heels
to face him, mane bristling, ears laid back, lips writhing and snarling,
jaws clipping together as fast as he could snap, and eyes diabolically
gleaming—the incarnation of belligerent fear.

He never had
enough, and suffered from perpetual hunger pangs.

No
lazy, sun-kissed life was this, with nothing to do but loaf and be bored.

It was all well enough in the Southland, under the law of love
and fellowship, to respect private property and personal feelings; but in
the Northland, under the law of club and fang, whoso took such things
into account was a fool, and in so far as he observed them he would fail
to prosper.

All was
confusion and action, and every moment life and limb were in peril.

So terrible was his
appearance that Spitz was forced to forego disciplining him; but to cover
his own discomfiture he turned upon the inoffensive and wailing Billee
and drove him to the confines of the camp.

Buck made
his hole in the snow and slept the sleep of the exhausted just, but all too
early was routed out in the cold darkness and harnessed with his mates
to the sled.

His only apparent
ambition, like Dave's, was to be left alone; though, as Buck was
afterward to learn, each of them possessed one other and even more vital
ambition.

Of this offense Buck was unwittingly
guilty, and the first knowledge he had of his indiscretion was when Solleks
whirled upon him and slashed his shoulder to the bone for three
inches up and down.

They quickened the old life within him, and the old tricks which they
had stamped into the heredity of the breed were his tricks.

The muscles of his whole body contracted
spasmodically and instinctively, the hair on his neck and shoulders stood
on end, and with a ferocious snarl he bounded straight up into the
blinding day, the snow flying about him in a flashing cloud.

No
lazy, sun-kissed life was this, with nothing to do but loaf and be bored.

When he saw Pike, one of the new dogs, a clever
malingerer and thief, slyly steal a slice of bacon when Perrault's back
was turned, he duplicated the performance the following day, getting
away with the whole chunk.

It marked, further, the decay or going to pieces of his
moral nature, a vain thing and a handicap in the ruthless struggle for
existence.

They were alert and active, anxious that the
work should go well, and fiercely irritable with whatever, by delay or
confusion, retarded that work.

He whined placatingly, squirmed and wriggled to
show his good will and intentions, and even ventured, as a bribe for
peace, to lick Buck's face with his warm wet tongue.

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.

Francois was stern, demanding instant
obedience, and by virtue of his whip receiving instant obedience; while
Dave, who was an experienced wheeler, nipped Buck's hind quarters
whenever he was in error.

It was a harness, such as he had seen
the grooms put on the horses at home.

A
dainty eater, he found that his mates, finishing first, robbed him of his
unfinished ration.

Always, they
broke camp in the dark, and the first gray of dawn found them hitting the
trail with fresh miles reeled off behind them.

Perrault was in a hurry, and he prided himself on
his knowledge of ice, which knowledge was indispensable, for the fall
ice was very thin, and where there was swift water, there was no ice at
all.

Civilized, he could have died for a
Page 7 of 8
moral consideration, say the defense of Judge Miller's riding-whip; but
the completeness of his de-civilization was now evidenced by his ability
to flee from the defense of a moral consideration and so save his hide.

Buck was
glad to be gone, and though the work was hard he found he did not
particularly despise it.

His most
conspicuous trait was an ability to scent the wind and forecast it a night
in advance.

Buck learned easily, and under the combined
tuition of his two mates and Francois made remarkable progress.

They were new
dogs, utterly transformed by the harness.

Civilized, he could have died for a
Page 7 of 8
moral consideration, say the defense of Judge Miller's riding-whip; but
the completeness of his de-civilization was now evidenced by his ability
to flee from the defense of a moral consideration and so save his hide.

By evening Perrault secured another dog, an old husky, long and lean
and gaunt, with a battle-scarred face and a single eye which flashed a
warning of prowess that commanded respect.

No
lazy, sun-kissed life was this, with nothing to do but loaf and be bored.

But no matter how Spitz circled, Joe whirled around on his heels
to face him, mane bristling, ears laid back, lips writhing and snarling,
jaws clipping together as fast as he could snap, and eyes diabolically
gleaming—the incarnation of belligerent fear.

No matter how breathless the air when he dug his nest by
tree or bank, the wind that later blew inevitably found him to leeward,
sheltered and snug.

All his
days, no matter what the odds, he had never run from a fight.

He was called Sol-leks,
which means the Angry One. Like Dave, he asked nothing, gave
nothing, expected nothing; and when he marched slowly and
deliberately into their midst, even Spitz left him alone.

Though his
dignity was sorely hurt by thus being made a draught animal, he was too
wise to rebel.

They closed in upon her,
snarling and yelping, and she was buried, screaming with agony, beneath
the bristling mass of bodies.

Buck learned easily, and under the combined
tuition of his two mates and Francois made remarkable progress.

The tent, illumined
by a candle, glowed warmly in the midst of the white plain; and when
he, as a matter of course, entered it, both Perrault and Francois
bombarded him with curses and cooking utensils, till he recovered from
his consternation and fled ignominiously into the outer cold.

Again he wandered about through the great camp, looking for them, and
again he returned.

As Francois's whip backed him up, Buck found it to
be cheaper to mend his ways than to retaliate.

By evening Perrault secured another dog, an old husky, long and lean
and gaunt, with a battle-scarred face and a single eye which flashed a
warning of prowess that commanded respect.

He was surprised at the eagerness which animated
the whole team and which was communicated to him; but still more
surprising was the change wrought in Dave and Sol-leks.

It marked, further, the decay or going to pieces of his
moral nature, a vain thing and a handicap in the ruthless struggle for
existence.

The tent, illumined
by a candle, glowed warmly in the midst of the white plain; and when
he, as a matter of course, entered it, both Perrault and Francois
bombarded him with curses and cooking utensils, till he recovered from
his consternation and fled ignominiously into the outer cold.

Buck did not
Page 2 of 8
Assignment instructions:
1.

With drooping tail and shivering body, very forlorn indeed, he aimlessly
circled the tent.

Miserable and
disconsolate, he wandered about among the many tents, only to find that
one place was as cold as another.

Billee's one
fault was his excessive good nature, while Joe was the very opposite,
sour and introspective, with a perpetual snarl and a malignant eye.

He could eat anything, no matter how
loathsome or indigestible; and, once eaten, the juices of his stomach
extracted the last least particle of nutriment; and his blood carried it to
the farthest reaches of his body, building it into the toughest and stoutest
of tissues.

He was surprised at the eagerness which animated
the whole team and which was communicated to him; but still more
surprising was the change wrought in Dave and Sol-leks.

So terrible was his
appearance that Spitz was forced to forego disciplining him; but to cover
his own discomfiture he turned upon the inoffensive and wailing Billee
and drove him to the confines of the camp.

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 unforgettable lesson.

They closed in upon her,
snarling and yelping, and she was buried, screaming with agony, beneath
the bristling mass of bodies.

He achieved an internal
as well as external economy.

He was surprised at the eagerness which animated
the whole team and which was communicated to him; but still more
surprising was the change wrought in Dave and Sol-leks.

He could eat anything, no matter how
loathsome or indigestible; and, once eaten, the juices of his stomach
extracted the last least particle of nutriment; and his blood carried it to
the farthest reaches of his body, building it into the toughest and stoutest
of tissues.

A great uproar was raised, but he was
unsuspected; while Dub, an awkward blunderer who was always getting
caught, was punished for Buck's misdeed.

But no matter how Spitz circled, Joe whirled around on his heels
to face him, mane bristling, ears laid back, lips writhing and snarling,
jaws clipping together as fast as he could snap, and eyes diabolically
gleaming—the incarnation of belligerent fear.

It marked his adaptability, his capacity to adjust himself to
changing conditions, the lack of which would have meant swift and
terrible death.

To his astonishment, they had disappeared.

Civilized, he could have died for a
Page 7 of 8
moral consideration, say the defense of Judge Miller's riding-whip; but
the completeness of his de-civilization was now evidenced by his ability
to flee from the defense of a moral consideration and so save his hide.

Before he had recovered from the shock caused by the tragic passing of
Curly, he received another shock.

His most
conspicuous trait was an ability to scent the wind and forecast it a night
in advance.

This first theft marked Buck as fit to survive in the hostile Northland
environment.

Of this offense Buck was unwittingly
guilty, and the first knowledge he had of his indiscretion was when Solleks
whirled upon him and slashed his shoulder to the bone for three
inches up and down.

Ere he
landed on his feet, he saw the white camp spread out before him and
knew where he was and remembered all that had passed from the time
he went for a stroll with Manuel to the hole he had dug for himself the
night before.

She never regained them, This was
what the onlooking huskies had waited for.

As courier for the Canadian Government,
bearing important dispatches, he was anxious to secure the best dogs,
and he was particularly gladdened by the possession of Buck.

Sight and scent became remarkably keen, while his hearing
developed such acuteness that in his sleep he heard the faintest sound
and knew whether it heralded peace or peril.

He was called Sol-leks,
which means the Angry One. Like Dave, he asked nothing, gave
nothing, expected nothing; and when he marched slowly and
deliberately into their midst, even Spitz left him alone.

Francois was stern, demanding instant
obedience, and by virtue of his whip receiving instant obedience; while
Dave, who was an experienced wheeler, nipped Buck's hind quarters
whenever he was in error.

By evening Perrault secured another dog, an old husky, long and lean
and gaunt, with a battle-scarred face and a single eye which flashed a
warning of prowess that commanded respect.

This first theft marked Buck as fit to survive in the hostile Northland
environment.

It was a hard day's run, up the Canon, through Sheep Camp, past the
Scales and the timber line, across glaciers and snowdrifts hundreds of
feet deep, and over the great Chilcoot Divide, which stands between the
salt water and the fresh and guards forbiddingly the sad and lonely
North.

Buck was
glad to be gone, and though the work was hard he found he did not
particularly despise it.

He did not rob openly, but stole secretly and cunningly, out of respect for
club and fang.

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.

As courier for the Canadian Government,
bearing important dispatches, he was anxious to secure the best dogs,
and he was particularly gladdened by the possession of Buck.

They were new
dogs, utterly transformed by the harness.

Billee wagged his tail
appeasingly, turned to run when he saw that appeasement was of no
avail, and cried (still appeasingly) when Spitz's sharp teeth scored his
flank.

But she lay there limp and lifeless in the bloody, trampled
snow, almost literally torn to pieces, the swart half-breed standing over
her and cursing horribly.

Perrault nodded gravely.

Though his
dignity was sorely hurt by thus being made a draught animal, he was too
wise to rebel.

But the
club of the man in the red sweater had beaten into him a more
fundamental and primitive code.

Listen to the short lecture on how to diagram a reading passage for meaning and understanding.
2.

Following the lecture, break into groups in order to create group story diagrams.

Billee wagged his tail
appeasingly, turned to run when he saw that appeasement was of no
avail, and cried (still appeasingly) when Spitz's sharp teeth scored his
flank.

Thirty or forty huskies ran to the spot and
surrounded the combatants in an intent and silent circle.

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.

Use the following diagramming format for your group story diagram:
comprehend that silent intentness, nor the eager way with which they
were licking their chops.

Thus, as token of what a puppet thing life is, the ancient song surged
through him and he came into his own again; and he came because men
had found a yellow metal in the North, and because Manuel was a
gardener's helper whose wages did not lap over the needs of his wife and
divers small copies of himself.

There was imperative need to be constantly alert; for these dogs and men
were not town dogs and men.

And as he had seen horses work,
so he was set to work, hauling Francois on a sled to the forest that
fringed the valley, and returning with a load of firewood.

And his
cadences were their cadences, the cadences which voiced their woe and
what to them was the meaning of the stiffness, and the cold, and dark.

But she lay there limp and lifeless in the bloody, trampled
snow, almost literally torn to pieces, the swart half-breed standing over
her and cursing horribly.

He was surprised at the eagerness which animated
the whole team and which was communicated to him; but still more
surprising was the change wrought in Dave and Sol-leks.

But the
club of the man in the red sweater had beaten into him a more
fundamental and primitive code.

They were savages, all of them, who knew
no law but the law of club and fang.

He achieved an internal
as well as external economy.

And as he had seen horses work,
so he was set to work, hauling Francois on a sled to the forest that
fringed the valley, and returning with a load of firewood.

They closed in upon her,
snarling and yelping, and she was buried, screaming with agony, beneath
the bristling mass of bodies.

It was a hard day's run, up the Canon, through Sheep Camp, past the
Scales and the timber line, across glaciers and snowdrifts hundreds of
feet deep, and over the great Chilcoot Divide, which stands between the
salt water and the fresh and guards forbiddingly the sad and lonely
North.

But the
club of the man in the red sweater had beaten into him a more
fundamental and primitive code.

He could eat anything, no matter how
loathsome or indigestible; and, once eaten, the juices of his stomach
extracted the last least particle of nutriment; and his blood carried it to
the farthest reaches of his body, building it into the toughest and stoutest
of tissues.

He met her next rush with his chest, in a peculiar
fashion that tumbled her off her feet.

So terrible was his
appearance that Spitz was forced to forego disciplining him; but to cover
his own discomfiture he turned upon the inoffensive and wailing Billee
and drove him to the confines of the camp.

He learned to bite the ice
out with his teeth when it collected between his toes; and when he was
thirsty and there was a thick scum of ice over the water hole, he would
break it by rearing and striking it with stiff fore legs.

So sudden was it, and so unexpected, that Buck was taken aback.

This first theft marked Buck as fit to survive in the hostile Northland
environment.

It was the wolf manner of fighting, to strike and leap away; but there was
more to it than this.

His only apparent
ambition, like Dave's, was to be left alone; though, as Buck was
afterward to learn, each of them possessed one other and even more vital
ambition.

To his astonishment, they had disappeared.

He could eat anything, no matter how
loathsome or indigestible; and, once eaten, the juices of his stomach
extracted the last least particle of nutriment; and his blood carried it to
the farthest reaches of his body, building it into the toughest and stoutest
of tissues.

Francois's whip snapped less
frequently, and Perrault even honored Buck by lifting up his feet and
carefully examining them.

He achieved an internal
as well as external economy.

When he saw Pike, one of the new dogs, a clever
malingerer and thief, slyly steal a slice of bacon when Perrault's back
was turned, he duplicated the performance the following day, getting
away with the whole chunk.

It was a hard day's run, up the Canon, through Sheep Camp, past the
Scales and the timber line, across glaciers and snowdrifts hundreds of
feet deep, and over the great Chilcoot Divide, which stands between the
salt water and the fresh and guards forbiddingly the sad and lonely
North.

Apt scholar that he was, they were equally apt
teachers, never allowing him to linger long in error, and enforcing their
teaching with their sharp teeth.

A shout from Francois hailed his appearance.

To
remedy this, he ate as fast as they; and, so greatly did hunger compel
him, he was not above taking what did not belong to him.

In a trice the heat from his body filled the confined
space and he was asleep.

In vague ways
he remembered back to the youth of the breed, to the time the wild dogs
ranged in packs through the primeval forest and killed their meat as they
ran it down.

Buck made
his hole in the snow and slept the sleep of the exhausted just, but all too
early was routed out in the cold darkness and harnessed with his mates
to the sled.

So terrible was his
appearance that Spitz was forced to forego disciplining him; but to cover
his own discomfiture he turned upon the inoffensive and wailing Billee
and drove him to the confines of the camp.

"Dat Buck, heem pool lak
hell.

Yet the other dogs,
because they weighed less and were born to the life, received a pound
only of the fish and managed to keep in good condition.

Francois fastened upon him an
arrangement of straps and buckles.

So terrible was his
appearance that Spitz was forced to forego disciplining him; but to cover
his own discomfiture he turned upon the inoffensive and wailing Billee
and drove him to the confines of the camp.

A whiff of
warm air ascended to his nostrils, and there, curled up under the snow in
a snug ball, lay Billee.

Buck did not
Page 2 of 8
Assignment instructions:
1.

Following the lecture, break into groups in order to create group story diagrams.

Francois, guiding the sled at the gee-pole, sometimes exchanged places
with him, but not often.

A chill wind
was blowing that nipped him sharply and bit with especial venom into
his wounded shoulder.

Francois was stern, demanding instant
obedience, and by virtue of his whip receiving instant obedience; while
Dave, who was an experienced wheeler, nipped Buck's hind quarters
whenever he was in error.

Buck
received them in comradely fashion, Dave ignored them, while Spitz
proceeded to thrash first one and then the other.

This first theft marked Buck as fit to survive in the hostile Northland
environment.

When he saw Pike, one of the new dogs, a clever
malingerer and thief, slyly steal a slice of bacon when Perrault's back
was turned, he duplicated the performance the following day, getting
away with the whole chunk.

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.

The resulting
tangle was even worse, but Buck took good care to keep the traces clear
thereafter; and ere the day was done, so well had he mastered his work,
his mates about ceased nagging him.

It was a hard day's run, up the Canon, through Sheep Camp, past the
Scales and the timber line, across glaciers and snowdrifts hundreds of
feet deep, and over the great Chilcoot Divide, which stands between the
salt water and the fresh and guards forbiddingly the sad and lonely
North.

He learned to bite the ice
out with his teeth when it collected between his toes; and when he was
thirsty and there was a thick scum of ice over the water hole, he would
break it by rearing and striking it with stiff fore legs.

The day had been long and arduous, and he
slept soundly and comfortably, though he growled and barked and
wrestled with bad dreams.

Apt scholar that he was, they were equally apt
teachers, never allowing him to linger long in error, and enforcing their
teaching with their sharp teeth.

But no matter how Spitz circled, Joe whirled around on his heels
to face him, mane bristling, ears laid back, lips writhing and snarling,
jaws clipping together as fast as he could snap, and eyes diabolically
gleaming—the incarnation of belligerent fear.

Thus, as token of what a puppet thing life is, the ancient song surged
through him and he came into his own again; and he came because men
had found a yellow metal in the North, and because Manuel was a
gardener's helper whose wages did not lap over the needs of his wife and
divers small copies of himself.

A great uproar was raised, but he was
unsuspected; while Dub, an awkward blunderer who was always getting
caught, was punished for Buck's misdeed.

He whined placatingly, squirmed and wriggled to
show his good will and intentions, and even ventured, as a bribe for
peace, to lick Buck's face with his warm wet tongue.

All was
confusion and action, and every moment life and limb were in peril.

Following the lecture, break into groups in order to create group story diagrams.

Yet the other dogs,
because they weighed less and were born to the life, received a pound
only of the fish and managed to keep in good condition.

Forever after Buck avoided his blind side, and to
the last of their comradeship had no more trouble.

Spitz was the leader, likewise experienced,
and while he could not always get at Buck, he growled sharp reproof
now and again, or cunningly threw his weight in the traces to jerk Buck
into the way he should go.

Miserable and
disconsolate, he wandered about among the many tents, only to find that
one place was as cold as another.

Francois was stern, demanding instant
obedience, and by virtue of his whip receiving instant obedience; while
Dave, who was an experienced wheeler, nipped Buck's hind quarters
whenever he was in error.

Buck made
his hole in the snow and slept the sleep of the exhausted just, but all too
early was routed out in the cold darkness and harnessed with his mates
to the sled.

Though his
dignity was sorely hurt by thus being made a draught animal, he was too
wise to rebel.

Sight and scent became remarkably keen, while his hearing
developed such acuteness that in his sleep he heard the faintest sound
and knew whether it heralded peace or peril.

And always they pitched
camp after dark, eating their bit of fish, and crawling to sleep into the
snow.

Buck confidently
selected a spot, and with much fuss and waste effort proceeded to dig a
hole for himself.

He was fit, that was all, and
unconsciously he accommodated himself to the new mode of life.

His only apparent
ambition, like Dave's, was to be left alone; though, as Buck was
afterward to learn, each of them possessed one other and even more vital
ambition.

Ere he
landed on his feet, he saw the white camp spread out before him and
knew where he was and remembered all that had passed from the time
he went for a stroll with Manuel to the hole he had dug for himself the
night before.

They were new
dogs, utterly transformed by the harness.

Spitz was the leader, likewise experienced,
and while he could not always get at Buck, he growled sharp reproof
now and again, or cunningly threw his weight in the traces to jerk Buck
into the way he should go.

No fair play.

Listen to the short lecture on how to diagram a reading passage for meaning and understanding.
2.

And not only did he learn by experience, but instincts long dead became
alive again.

It marked his adaptability, his capacity to adjust himself to
changing conditions, the lack of which would have meant swift and
terrible death.

Once, during a brief halt,
when he got tangled in the traces and delayed the start, both Dave and
Solleks flew at him and administered a sound trouncing.

He learned to bite the ice
out with his teeth when it collected between his toes; and when he was
thirsty and there was a thick scum of ice over the water hole, he would
break it by rearing and striking it with stiff fore legs.

Buck confidently
selected a spot, and with much fuss and waste effort proceeded to dig a
hole for himself.

He had one
peculiarity which Buck was unlucky enough to discover.

Of this offense Buck was unwittingly
guilty, and the first knowledge he had of his indiscretion was when Solleks
whirled upon him and slashed his shoulder to the bone for three
inches up and down.

His development (or retrogression) was rapid.

Three men
with clubs were helping him to scatter them.

The tent, illumined
by a candle, glowed warmly in the midst of the white plain; and when
he, as a matter of course, entered it, both Perrault and Francois
bombarded him with curses and cooking utensils, till he recovered from
his consternation and fled ignominiously into the outer cold.

He had been suddenly jerked from the
heart of civilization and flung into the heart of things primordial.

Francois was stern, demanding instant
obedience, and by virtue of his whip receiving instant obedience; while
Dave, who was an experienced wheeler, nipped Buck's hind quarters
whenever he was in error.

The muscles of his whole body contracted
spasmodically and instinctively, the hair on his neck and shoulders stood
on end, and with a ferocious snarl he bounded straight up into the
blinding day, the snow flying about him in a flashing cloud.

Yet the other dogs,
because they weighed less and were born to the life, received a pound
only of the fish and managed to keep in good condition.

It was a hard day's run, up the Canon, through Sheep Camp, past the
Scales and the timber line, across glaciers and snowdrifts hundreds of
feet deep, and over the great Chilcoot Divide, which stands between the
salt water and the fresh and guards forbiddingly the sad and lonely
North.

Here was neither peace, nor rest, nor a moment's safety.

Thirty or forty huskies ran to the spot and
surrounded the combatants in an intent and silent circle.

Use the following diagramming format for your group story diagram:
comprehend that silent intentness, nor the eager way with which they
were licking their chops.

Always, they
broke camp in the dark, and the first gray of dawn found them hitting the
trail with fresh miles reeled off behind them.

Francois, guiding the sled at the gee-pole, sometimes exchanged places
with him, but not often.

It was all well enough in the Southland, under the law of love
and fellowship, to respect private property and personal feelings; but in
the Northland, under the law of club and fang, whoso took such things
into account was a fool, and in so far as he observed them he would fail
to prosper.

No matter how breathless the air when he dug his nest by
tree or bank, the wind that later blew inevitably found him to leeward,
sheltered and snug.

Though his
dignity was sorely hurt by thus being made a draught animal, he was too
wise to rebel.

Buck confidently
selected a spot, and with much fuss and waste effort proceeded to dig a
hole for himself.

Thus, as token of what a puppet thing life is, the ancient song surged
through him and he came into his own again; and he came because men
had found a yellow metal in the North, and because Manuel was a
gardener's helper whose wages did not lap over the needs of his wife and
divers small copies of himself.

Nor did he open his eyes till roused by the noises of the waking camp.

When he saw Pike, one of the new dogs, a clever
malingerer and thief, slyly steal a slice of bacon when Perrault's back
was turned, he duplicated the performance the following day, getting
away with the whole chunk.

Listen to the short lecture on how to diagram a reading passage for meaning and understanding.
2.

Francois fastened upon him an
arrangement of straps and buckles.

He had been suddenly jerked from the
heart of civilization and flung into the heart of things primordial.

Billee wagged his tail
appeasingly, turned to run when he saw that appeasement was of no
avail, and cried (still appeasingly) when Spitz's sharp teeth scored his
flank.

They came to
him without effort or discovery, as though they had been his always.

He achieved an internal
as well as external economy.

They were alert and active, anxious that the
work should go well, and fiercely irritable with whatever, by delay or
confusion, retarded that work.

Spitz
ran out his tongue and laughed again, and from that moment Buck hated
him with a bitter and deathless hatred.

Once, during a brief halt,
when he got tangled in the traces and delayed the start, both Dave and
Solleks flew at him and administered a sound trouncing.

The muscles of his whole body contracted
spasmodically and instinctively, the hair on his neck and shoulders stood
on end, and with a ferocious snarl he bounded straight up into the
blinding day, the snow flying about him in a flashing cloud.

Francois, guiding the sled at the gee-pole, sometimes exchanged places
with him, but not often.

He met her next rush with his chest, in a peculiar
fashion that tumbled her off her feet.

Sight and scent became remarkably keen, while his hearing
developed such acuteness that in his sleep he heard the faintest sound
and knew whether it heralded peace or peril.

There was no defending it.

Curly
was the victim.

The toil of the traces seemed the supreme
expression of their being, and all that they lived for and the only thing in
which they took delight.

It had snowed during the night
and he was completely buried.

As courier for the Canadian Government,
bearing important dispatches, he was anxious to secure the best dogs,
and he was particularly gladdened by the possession of Buck.

Before he had recovered from the shock caused by the tragic passing of
Curly, he received another shock.

To
remedy this, he ate as fast as they; and, so greatly did hunger compel
him, he was not above taking what did not belong to him.

Billee's one
fault was his excessive good nature, while Joe was the very opposite,
sour and introspective, with a perpetual snarl and a malignant eye.

He was called Sol-leks,
which means the Angry One. Like Dave, he asked nothing, gave
nothing, expected nothing; and when he marched slowly and
deliberately into their midst, even Spitz left him alone.

Buck learned easily, and under the combined
tuition of his two mates and Francois made remarkable progress.

A great uproar was raised, but he was
unsuspected; while Dub, an awkward blunderer who was always getting
caught, was punished for Buck's misdeed.

Once, during a brief halt,
when he got tangled in the traces and delayed the start, both Dave and
Solleks flew at him and administered a sound trouncing.

The domesticated generations fell from him.

He learned to bite the ice
out with his teeth when it collected between his toes; and when he was
thirsty and there was a thick scum of ice over the water hole, he would
break it by rearing and striking it with stiff fore legs.

He whined placatingly, squirmed and wriggled to
show his good will and intentions, and even ventured, as a bribe for
peace, to lick Buck's face with his warm wet tongue.

Perrault was in a hurry, and he prided himself on
his knowledge of ice, which knowledge was indispensable, for the fall
ice was very thin, and where there was swift water, there was no ice at
all.

Francois's whip snapped less
frequently, and Perrault even honored Buck by lifting up his feet and
carefully examining them.

It marked, further, the decay or going to pieces of his
moral nature, a vain thing and a handicap in the ruthless struggle for
existence.

It is true, it was a
vicarious experience, else he would not have lived to profit by it.

The tent, illumined
by a candle, glowed warmly in the midst of the white plain; and when
he, as a matter of course, entered it, both Perrault and Francois
bombarded him with curses and cooking utensils, till he recovered from
his consternation and fled ignominiously into the outer cold.

A whiff of
warm air ascended to his nostrils, and there, curled up under the snow in
a snug ball, lay Billee.

It was all well enough in the Southland, under the law of love
and fellowship, to respect private property and personal feelings; but in
the Northland, under the law of club and fang, whoso took such things
into account was a fool, and in so far as he observed them he would fail
to prosper.

In vague ways
he remembered back to the youth of the breed, to the time the wild dogs
ranged in packs through the primeval forest and killed their meat as they
ran it down.

No
lazy, sun-kissed life was this, with nothing to do but loaf and be bored.

Curly rushed her antagonist, who struck again
and leaped aside.

His development (or retrogression) was rapid.

Billee's one
fault was his excessive good nature, while Joe was the very opposite,
sour and introspective, with a perpetual snarl and a malignant eye.

It marked, further, the decay or going to pieces of his
moral nature, a vain thing and a handicap in the ruthless struggle for
existence.

Spitz was the leader, likewise experienced,
and while he could not always get at Buck, he growled sharp reproof
now and again, or cunningly threw his weight in the traces to jerk Buck
into the way he should go.

It was no task for him to learn to fight with cut and slash
and the quick wolf snap.

Billee's one
fault was his excessive good nature, while Joe was the very opposite,
sour and introspective, with a perpetual snarl and a malignant eye.

Three more huskies were added to the team inside an hour, making a
total of nine, and before another quarter of an hour had passed they were
Page 5 of 8
in harness and swinging up the trail toward the Dyea Canon.