Dec. 1857. THE ARCTIC FOXES. 61 



allowed to remain attached to the flesh and tongue. The 

 skull of a musk ox with its massive horns cannot weigh less 

 than 30 lbs. 



Although it has been abundantly proved by the existence 

 of raised beaches and fossils, that the shores of Smith's 

 Sound have been elevated within a comparatively recent 

 geological period, yet Petersen tells me that there exist 

 numerous ruins of Esquimaux buildings, probably one or 

 two centuries old, all of which are situated upon very low 

 points, only just sufficiently raised above the reach of the 

 sea ; such sites, in fact, as would at present be selected by 

 the natives. These ruins show that no perceptible change 

 has taken place in the relative level of sea and land since 

 they were originally constructed. At Petersen's Greenland 

 home, Upernivik, the land has sunk, as is plainly shown by 

 similar ruins over which the tides now flow. 



Anything which illustrates the habits of animals in such 

 extremely high latitudes I think is most interesting; their 

 instincts must be quickened in proportion as the difficulty 

 of subsisting increases. Foxes, white, and sooty or dingy- 

 blue, are very numerous ; all the birds are merely summer 

 visitors, therefore the hare is the only creature remaining 

 upon which foxes can prey ; but the hares are comparatively 

 scarce, how then do the foxes live for eight months of each 

 year ? Petersen thinks they store up provisions during the 

 summer in various holes and crevices, and thus manage to 

 eke out an existence during the dark winter's season ; he 

 once saw a fox carry off eggs in his mouth from an eider- 

 duck's nest, one at a time, until the whole were removed ; 

 and in winter he has observed a fox scratch a hole down 

 through very deep snow, to a cache of eggs beneath. 



Both these kinds of foxes have been found in all arctic 

 lands ; they are very small, and in their winter fur are 

 beautiful animals, full of tricks and impudence. 



