Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1897-01-05

HOiulAS the uSdT ny lH6 IHTOdl. L
caught at my gun, which lay on the
fore deck of my kayak. but at the same
moment the boat slid into the water,
and the gun with 1t. By eXerting all
my strength l hauled the heavily laden
kayak up again, but while doing so |
heard Johansen quietly remark: you
must hurry up if you don't want to
be too late" At last | got the gun
out OF its case, and as | turned round
with 1t cooked the bear was just in
front of me. In the hurry of the mo-
ment | had cooked the right barrel,
which was loaded with shot, but the
charge took effect behind the ear and
the bear fell down dead between us.
The only wound Johansen had receiv-
ed was a slight scratch on the back
OF the hand, and we went on our way
well laden with fresh bears meat.
For cooking. lighting and heating we
used walrus blubber and bears fat.
Bears flesh and fat were our only food.
In the evening efried it in q large alum
mum frying-pan; in the morning we boiled
it. We made our bed and sleeping bag
OF bear skin. To keep IL warmer both
slept in one bag. and taken altogether.
we were quite comfortable in our hut. of
which great part lay below the level of
the ground and was. therefore, fairly
well protected from the violent winter
storms which continually ragged above it.
BY the help Of our lamps we succeeded in
keeping the temperature inside at about
freezing point, while on the walls 1t was.
OF course, considerably lower These
were covered with a thick coating of rime
and ice, which, in the lamp-light, i'm
parted Il beautiful marmoreal appear
ance to the walls of the hut. so that in
our happier moments we could dream
that we dwelt in marble walls.
The hut was about ten feet long. six
feet broad and high enough in some places
to allow our standing almost erect. Our
couch was formed OF rough stones: we
never quite succeeded in getting it quite
tolerably smooth, and our most important
business throughout the winter was there
fore, TO bend the body into the most var
led positions in order to discover the one
in which the pressure of the stones was
least felt.
We had no work which could help TO
make the time pass; we did little else
than sleep, eat, and then sleep again. If
any one still holds the old belief that
scurvy arises from want of exercise this
is a striking proof that such is not the
case. Strange to say. cur appetites con-
tinued unimpaired the whole time, and we
always consumed our bears flesh and our
fat with the same voracity. When the
weather permitted we would take an
IL IN, I'll cid do
the hut, but often it was so stormy that
it was not expedient to put ones nose be-
yond the passage which led to our palace.
Several days would often pass in which
we lay quite still. until at last a scarcity
of ice to melt for drinking water, or of
food. compelled us TO go out TO fetch ice
or 10 drag in the carcass or leg of a
bear.
After November we were not visited by
bears again until March, and our only
company in the winter was a number of
foxes, which constantly sat upon the roof
OF our hut, whence we could hear their
perpetual gnawing at our frozen hams.
1t made US often dream that we were sit
ting comfortably at home listening TO the
rats IN the loft above, and we by no
means = dyed them a little of our abun-
dance. These foxes were both of the
white variety and of the valuable dark
furred kind. and had we been so inclined
we could easily have laid by a good store
of valuable furs. Our supply of ammuni-
| ton, however, was not so large as TO al
! low. in my opinion. of our, spending 1t
upon them. for it seemed to me that bears
were the smallest game that could give
us return for our cartridges.
Upon the whole the winter passed in a
manner beyond our expectation. Our
! health was excellent. and if we hai had
a few books, little -four and a little su-
gar, we were both agreed that we could
| have lived like lords.
! There was much. however, to be done
/ before we could set off. Our clothes were
| so worn out and so saturated with fat
! and dirt that they were anything but
/ suitable for a journey of this kind We
therefore. made ourselves two entire new
| suits out of two blankets we had brought
! with us. Our underclothing we tried tc
wash as best we could. but never before
| did know what it was to exist without
soap. 1t was difficult enough to get ones
! person clean. but this we managed TO a
certain extent by rubbing in bears blood
/ and fat and then rubbing this off with
moss. But this process was not appli'
cable to clothes.
| After trying every possible way. we
| found in our despair. no other eXpedient
! than to boil them as we best could and
| then scrape them with n knife In this
way we got so much off them that they
| did to travel with. though the thought OF
| putting on clean clothes when we once
| more got back TO Norway was always in
our minds as the greatest enjoyment that
! life could bestow. We had to make new
| sleepiug5bag of bearslkins, which we dried
| and prepared by stretching them out un'
der the roof of our hut. Our good prec'
| ious silk tent, which we had had during
| the whole of the preceding years journey
! had at last during the autumn storms. be-
! come so worn out that l did not think il
| could be used any more. We were now
therefore. obliged to employ our sledgt
rails as tent. Our provisions for the
tourney were chiefly bears flesh and fat
and our fuel was train oil and blubber
! and we were sure of finding sufficient
| game on the way when the provisions we
took with us gave out.
During our voyage along this south
coast we had several mishaps. which
however. ended happily. One day. wher
we had been sailing along the shore, W.
Law to in the evening on the ice to recon
hotter our further way westward. IT
I leaving the kayaks we made them fast t(
the ice by strong strap which W.
thought was perfectly reliable While W.
were little way off on the top of hum
muck. however, we discovered that oui