APPENDIX II 365 



not stop for drifts or ledges or puddles; they seemed 

 to enjoy the mad dash down the mountain-side as well 

 as we did. 



This herd of musk-oxen was the last we saw. After 

 we got our sledges reloaded we returned to Camp Mar- 

 vin, where we slept, before starting on our homeward 

 journey. Leaving Camp Marvin early June 3d, we 

 headed directly across Lady Franklin Bay to Cape 

 Baird. The ice was rather rough, but E-took-a-shoo, 

 who led the party, was adept at picking out the smooth- 

 est trail possible. Because the ice around Cape Baird 

 was crushed and piled up chaotically, we were several 

 times forced to sledge up on the land to get by. Most 

 of the afternoon we traveled slowly through the rough 

 ice, but about six o'clock we struck smooth ice that 

 extended the whole length of Kennedy Channel, so far 

 as we could see from the heights of Cape Defosse, at 

 the foot of which we made Camp Archer about nine 

 o'clock that evening. 



Early June 4th we broke camp again, eager to get 

 down to Cape Constitution, where Mac had promised 

 to make the first cache for our return. We were in 

 need of no supplies, for we still had oil, tea, and suffi- 

 cient meat, but we expected to find letters there, too. 

 We made splendid time. The ice was smooth as glass. 

 Two wide leads, over which we ferried on ice-cakes, 

 indicated that the ice was breaking up, an added in- 

 centive to strike the Greenland shore as soon as jk)s- 

 sible. Not until we were near Hans Island did we 

 encounter any serious obstacle. 



Just a mile or so north of that little island our progress 

 was stopped by a monster pressure-ridge about forty 

 feet high that seemed to extend quite across the channel. 



