Buck's first day in this new, cold country was very bad. There were a Blot of dangerous men and dogs everywhere.
This wasn't a sunny, easy life. Here, there was no rest. Buck had to be careful and he had to learn quickly.
These dogs and men weren't from the South. They were wild, and they followed the law of the club.
Buck's first new lesson, in this cold place, came quickly. Buck and Curly stood near a store, in one of the camps. A new dog walked past them. Curly wanted to be friendly, so she barked quietly. Suddenly, the other dog turned around and attacked her. He hurt her face very badly.
Many other dogs saw the attack and ran quickly to the two dogs. They stood and watched quietly. They all looked excited and interested, and Buck didn't understand.
Curly was very angry, so she jumped at this strange, unfriendly dog.
But the dog attacked her again and jumped away quickly.