368 VOYAGE TO THE 



accompanied us to the boat, and as we pushed off 

 they each picked up a few pebbles and carried them 

 IS*' away with them, but for what purpose we could 

 not guess, nor had we ever seen the custom before. 



The point upon which this village stands projects 

 almost sixteen miles from the general line of coast ; 

 it is intersected by several lakes and small creeks, 

 the entrances of which are on the north side. There 

 is a bar across the mouth of the opening, consisting 

 of pebbles and mud, which has every appearance of 

 being on the increase ; but when the water is smooth 

 a boat may enter, and she will find very excellent 

 security within from all winds. It is remarkable 

 that both Cook and Clerke, who passed within a 

 very short distance of this point, mistook the pro- 

 jection for ice that had been driven against the 

 land, and omitted to mark it in their chart. 



The next morning we communicated with the 

 barge, and found she had been visited daily by the 

 natives, who were very friendly. The current in- 

 shore was more rapid than in the offing, and the 

 water more fresh. After replenishing her provi- 

 sions, we steered to the northward, and endeavoured 

 to get in with the land on the northern side of 

 Point Hope; but the wind was so light that we 

 could not hold our ground against the current, and 

 were drifted away slowly to the northward. In the 

 morning, the wind being still unfavourable for this 

 purpose, we steered for the farthest land in sight to 

 the northward, which answered to Cape Lisburn of 

 Captain Cook. As we approached it, the current 

 slackened, and the depth and specific gravity of the 

 sea both increased. We landed here, and ascended 

 the mountain to obtain a fair view of the coast, 



