Year: 1859

or no trouble, be divided into flaments of
what fneness they thought fit. This, perhaps,
was tho most fortunate discovery these men
could have made; for, besides other advanta-
ges, which will be hereafter mentioned, they
were hereby furnished with strings for their
bow. f ID /


"The success Of our unfortunate islanders
In making the spears, and the use these proved
Of, encouraged them to proceed, and to forge
some pieces Of iron into heads Of arrows of tie
Same shape, though somewhat smaller in size
than the spears above mentioned. Having
ground aud sharpened these like the former,
they tied them with the sinews of the white
bears to pieces of fir, to which, by the help of
fine threads of the same, they fastened feathers
of sea-fowl, and thus became possessed of a
complete bow and arrows. Their ingenuity
in this respect, was crowned with success far
beyond their expectation; for during the time
of their continuance upon the island, with
these arrows they killed no less than two hun
dred and fifty reindeer, besides great number
of blue and white foxes. The flesh of these
animals served them also for food, and their
skins for clothing and other necessary preser-
Yatives against the intense coldness of q eli
mate so near the Pole. ...


"They killed, however, only ten white bears
in all, and that not without the utmost danger;
for these animals being prodigiOusly strong,
defended themselves with astonishing vigor
and fury. The first our men attacked design
edly; the other nine they slew in defending
themselves from their assaults; for some of
these creatures even ventured to enter the
outer room of the hut in order to devour them.
1t is true, that all the b,ars did not shew (if
may be allowed the expression) equal intre-
pidity, either owing to some being less pressed
by hunger, or to their being by nature less
carnivorous than the others; for some of them
which entered the hut Immediately betook
themselves to fight on the first attempt of the
sailors to drive them away. A repetition,
however, of these ferocious attacks threw the
poor men into great terror and anxiety, as
they were almost in perpetual danger of be-
ing devoured. The three different kinds of
animals above mentioned, viz, the reindeer,
the blue and white foxes, and the white bears,
were the only food these wretched mariners
tasted during their continuance in this dreary
abode.


owe do not at once see every resource. 1t
is generally necessity which quickens our in
vention, opening by degrees our eyes, and
pointing out expedients which otherwise might
never have occurred to our thoughts. The
truth of this observation our four sailors expe-
rienced in various instances. They were for
some time reduced to the necessity of eating
their meat almost raw, and without either bread



The intenseness Of the cold, together with the
want Of proper oonveniencss, prevented them
from cooking their victuals in proper man
ner. There was but one stove in the hut, and
that being set up agreeably to the Russian
taste, was more like an oven, and consequently
not well adapted for boiling anything. Wood
also was too precious commodity to be
wasted In keeping up two fires; and the one
they might have made out of their habitation
to dress their victuals would in no way have
served to warm them. Another reason against
their cooking IN the open air was the continual
danger of an attack from the white bears.
And here I must observe, that suppose they
had made the attempt, il would still have been
practicable for only some part of tho year; for
the cold, which in such q climate for some
months scarce ever abates, from the long alb
sence Of the sun, then enlightening tho oppo-
site hemisphere, the uncomfortable quantity Of
snow which Is continually falling through the
greatest part Of the winter, together with the
almost incessant rains at certain seasons, all
these were insurmOuntable obstacles to that
expedient.


"To remedy, therefore, in some degree, the
hardship of eating their meat raw, they be-
thought themselves Of drying some of their
provisions during the summer, in the open air,
and afterwards Of hanging II up In the upper
part of the hut, which, as mentioned before,
was continually filed with smoke, down to the
windows; IL was thus dried thoroughly by the
help of that smoke. This meat, SO prepared,
they used for bread, and IL made them relish
their other Aesh the better, as they could only
half dress IT, Finding this experiment an
swer in every respect their wishes, they con-
tinued to practise II during the whole time of
their confinement upon the island, and always
kept up by that means q sufficient stock of
provisic rs. Water they had in summer from
amsll .rh uleta that fell from the rocks, and in