﻿230 HARRISON ISLAND. August, 



of a mass of trap, which now forms the top of the 

 hill, has tilted up a bed of limestone, and separated 

 it from one of sandstone. 



In the afternoon we passed another considerable 

 affluent from the hills in lat. 68° 18' N. ; some 

 hours later, another one of less size ; and very soon 

 afterwards crossed a channel which bounds Harrison 

 Island on the south. This island, like M'Gillivray's, 

 is divided into several portions by minor creeks. 

 The boats were under sail all the afternoon, and 

 must have been observed, about 5 o'clock, by the 

 hunting-parties of the Eskimos, for at that time 

 we noticed a line of six or eight signal smokes, 

 raised in succession along the hills, and speedily 

 extinguished again. As the Eskimos use fire- wood 

 very sparingly for cooking, and, like the Indians 

 generally, burn only dry wood which emits but little 

 vapour, we knew that the smokes we saw were in- 

 tended to spread the intelligence of the arrival of 

 strangers in the country, and therefore that we 

 might expect to find a considerable body assembled 

 on some part of the river to meet us. In the 

 evening we landed to cook supper, and re-embarked 

 to continue under sail all night, with a very light 

 breeze ; our progress was, however, slow, owing to 

 the uncertain eddies and currents, produced by the 

 junction of the several cross-channels. At mid- 

 night we passed the creek which bounds Harrison 

 Island on the north, in 68° 37' N. Here several 



