He was a long way from camp, and he feared that if he rested he could not force himself to resume the march.

Besides, there were the wolves to reckon with; and he could not escape if they followed him in the dark.

Prudence suggested that he should cut off as much meat as possible, and after placing it out of reach in a tree, set off for camp at his best speed without taking any of the raw flesh to scent the air; but this was more than he could bring himself to do.
His comrades were very hungry, and some animal might climb to the frozen meat.

It was unthinkable that he should run any risk of losing the precious food.

He decided to take as much as he could carry, and store the rest in a tree; and he set to work with the hunting knife in anxious haste.
It was now quite dark; he could not see what he was cutting, and if he gashed his hand, which was numbed and almost useless, the wound would not heal.