He ran rapidly over these gaps, touching the ice as lightly as possible and not remaining upon any piece long enough to permit it to sink.
And so it came about that presently with a vast sense of relief Bobby clambered from the last unstable ice pan to the big ice pack, and for a time, at least, felt that he had escaped the sea.
For a moment he stood and looked back over the hazardous path that he had traversed.

Then climbing upon a high hummock, which attained the proportions of a small berg, he scanned his surroundings.
To the northward lay the loose ice; to the eastward and southward as far as he could see stretched the unbroken ice of the great field; to the westward and two miles distant was the black water of the open sea, dotted here and there by vagrant pans of ice which glistened white in the bright sunlight as they rose and fell upon the tide.
Suddenly his attention was attracted to something which made him stare in astonishment and wonder.

Near the water's edge, and extending back from the water for a considerable distance, there appeared innumerable dark objects, some lying quiet upon the ice, others moving slowly about.
"Seals!" exclaimed Bobby.

"Seals! Hundreds--thousands of them! I can get one now before they take to the water! They're too far back to get to the water before I can get at them!" And scrambling down from the hummock he set out as fast as he could go, highly excited at the prospect of food that had so suddenly come to him.
"Oh, if I can get one!" he said as he ran, "if I can only get one! God help me to get one!" With this prayer on his lips, and keen anxiety in his breast, he neared the seals.

Then, all of his hunter's instincts alert, his advance became slow and cautious.