The daily press. (Cincinnati [Ohio) 1859-1859, 1859-06-20
tCONTINuED.l


81 have before observed, that the hut, which
the sailors were so fortunate as to find, had
sustained some damage, and it was this: there
were cracks in many places between the boards
OF the building, which freely admitted the air
This inconveniency was, however, easily rene
died, as they had an axe, and the beams were
still found (for wood in those cold climates
continues through q length of years unimpaired
by worms or decay, so It was easy for them to
make the boards Join again very tolerably;
besides, moss growing in great abundance all
over the island, there was more than sufficient
to stop up the crevices, which wooden houses
must always be liable to. Repairs of this kind
cost the unhappy men the less trouble, as they
were Russians; for all Russian peasants are
known to be good carpenters; they build their
own houses, and are very expert in handling
the axe.
"The intense cold which makes those eli
mates habitable to so few species of animals,
renders them equally unfit for the production
of vegetables. No species of tree, or even
shrub, is found on any of the islands of SpitE-
bergen; circumstance of the most alarming
nature to our sailors. Without fire, it was i'm
possible to resist the rlgor of the climate; and
without wood, how was that fire to be pro-
duoed or supported? Providence, however,
had SO ordered it, that in this particular, the
sea supplies the defects of the land. In wan
dering along the beach, they collected plenty
OF wood, which had been driven ashore by the
waves, and which at first consisted of the
wrecks of ships, and afterwards of whole trees
with their roots, the produce of some moro
hOspitable, but to them unknown climate,
which the overfOwing of rivers, or other ac-
cidents, had sent into the ocean. This will
not appear incredible to those who have
perused the journals of the several nayigators
xyh houa ko1x -.
bla, or any other country in still more north
ern latitude.
"Nothing proved Of more essential service Ia
these unfortunate men during the first year oil
their exile than some boards they found upon
the beach; having a long iron hook, some nails
of about five or six inches long, and proper
tonably thick, and other bits Of old iron fixed
in themj the melancholy relics of some vessels
cast awsV in those remote parts. These were
thrown ashore by the waves at time when
the want Of powder gave our mon reason to
apprehend that they must fall a prey to hun
ger, as they had nearly consumed those rein
deer they had killed. This lucky circum-
stance was attended with another, equally
fortunate; they found on the shore tho root OF
q hr-tree, which nearly approached to the
figure of bow. tL9Ht
"As necessity has ever been the mother OF
invention, SO they soon fashioned this root to
q good bow by the help of knife; but still
they wanted string, and arrows. Not know
ing how to procure these at present, they re-
solved upon making couple of lances to de-
tend themselves against the white bears, by
far the most ferocious of their kind, whose at
tacks they had great reason to dread.
"Finding they could neither make the heads
of their lances nor of their arrows without the
help of hammer, they contrived to form the
large iron hook, mentioned above, into one, by
heating it, and widening hole it happened to
have about its middle with the help cof one of
their largest nails. This received the handle,
and O round button at one end Of the hook
served for the face of the hammer. A, large
pebble supplied the place of an anvil, and a
couple Of reindeer's horns made the tongs.
By the means of such tools, they made two
heads of spears; and after polishing and
sharpening them on stones, they tied them as
fast as possible with thongs made of reindeer
skins to sticks about the thickness of mans
arm, which they got from some branches of
trees that had been cast on shore.
"Thus equipped with speais, they resolved
to attack q white bear; and after most dan
gerous encounter, they killed the formidable
creature, and thereby made o new supply Of
provisions! The flesh Of the animal they relI
ishsd exceedingly, as they thought 1t much re-
sombled beefin taste and favor, The tcndOns
they saw with much pleasure could, with little