526 MR. J. K. KANE'S NARRATIVE. 



clothes are lined with its skins, they burn the fat, and, 

 setting aside the livers and hearts, to be dried, and con- 

 sumed as bonbons during the winter, they eat the meat 

 and intestines cooked and raw, both cold and at blood 

 heat. 



" They are very hospitable ; the minute we arrived, 

 all hands began to catch birds and prepare them for us. 

 Tearing off the skins with their teeth, they stripped the 

 breasts to be cooked, and presented us with the juicy 

 entrails and remaining portions to eat raw, and stay 

 our appetites. The viands did not look inviting to us, 

 who had witnessed their preparation ; but they appeared 

 so hurt at our refusing to eat, that we had to explain 

 that it was not cooked but raw birds we wanted. This 

 was satisfactory. They set out at once to catch some 

 for us ; and in a few moments three of them were on 

 their way down to our boat loaded with birds. 



" Though all the natives had told us that Dr. Kane's 

 party had gone southwards after leaving their settle- 

 ment, still we were far from certain that they had con- 

 tinued their progress in that direction, and Captain 

 Hartstein was for some time in doubt as to the course 

 which we ought to pursue ; whether we should return 

 at once to Upernavik by our old track, or run across 

 the bay and examine its western coast. He finally 

 determined on the latter, believing that, if Dr. Kane 

 and his party had gone down the eastern coast, they 

 would by this time either have been lost in Melville 

 Bay, or safely arrived at Upernavik ; while, on the 

 contrary, if they had tried to reach the English fleet in 

 Lancaster Sound, being ignorant of its desertion, they 

 might be there now in a starving condition. 



" We reached Cape Alexander without any incident 

 worthy of note, and, after searching its barren rocks to 

 no purpose, built a cairn, and in it deposited the record 



