C Ihe Ladies c cu. V'VVAN - History and Classics, Department of

46 THE LADIES, THE GWICH'IN, AND THE RATnothing, dreamy state of mind that may enclose a man as surely as prison walls,One of the tourists had said, with an air of wisdom: "You may be sure if a mangets into the North and wants to stay there, then there is some weakness in him.He is unfit for competition with the world."We began to wonder, were we ourselves becoming unfit for competition withthe world, giving way to the weakness of the dreamer who makes no reckoning oftime? Did we want to stay in this land that had lured us so far from our homes?Perhaps we did.