"What would you like best of everything in the world if you could
have it?"

"A nice piece of blubber from a walrus or some reindeer tallow,"
said Menie.

"Oh, no," Monnie cried. "That isn't half as good as reindeer's
stomach, or fishes' eyes! Um-m how I love fishes' eyes! I tell
you, Menie, let's get something to eat and then go fishing,
before the sun goes down!"

"All right," said Menie. "Let's see if Mother won't give us a
piece of bear's fat! That is almost as good as blubber or fishes'
eyes."


II.

They dived into the igloo. Their mother was standing beside the
oil lamp, putting strands of dried moss into the oil. This lamp
was their only stove and their only light. It didn't look much
like our stoves. It was just a piece of soapstone, shaped
something like a clamshell. It was all lowed out so it would
hold the oil. All along the shallow side of the pan there were
little tendrils of dried moss, like threads. These were the
wicks.

Over the fire pan there was a rack, and from the rack a stone pan
hung down over the lamp flame. It was tied by leather thongs to
the rack. In the pan a piece of bear's meat was simmering. The