2oo SPITSBERGEN chap, xiv 



if we wished to make a complete collection, Gregory's 

 deposit at Windy Point. In the last was the plum-pudding, 

 which decided the issue. 



The sledges were thus indeed heavily burdened, and to 

 make matters worse they had to be dragged over slopes 

 furrowed with innumerable gullies. I only beheld their 

 troubles from afar, for work kept me close to the beach. 

 Gregory toiled exceedingly to help his beast, constantly 

 having to lift the sledge-end on to banks, whilst the ponies 

 became tired, and unwilling. When, at the last, a ridge 

 had to be mounted to a height of perhaps 300 feet, the 

 labour for every one was almost too much. My walk along 

 the beach would have been delightful but for the cutting 

 wind. There was always the beauty of the fjord, to which 

 the charm and interest of the coast were added. A long 

 overhanging snow-front still remained in many places, 

 undermined by the tide, and breaking away in great lumps, 

 soon to disappear. The beach was covered with traces of 

 man, an old milk-tin ("made in Germany"), a quantity of 

 tent-pegs white with age, driftwood of shaped fragments, 

 besides large sawn pieces of timber never intended to find 

 their way to these shores. Windy Point is the jutting raised 

 delta of a glacier stream that comes from Flower Valley. 

 We followed along it to close under the hills, where was a 

 wooden signal, set up recently for survey purposes by Baron 

 de Geer ; near by were the traces of his camp. Here 

 accordingly we halted and set up a noble camp of three 

 tents, our two large ones from Advent Bay and the little 

 up-country tent for Williamson. The work of tent-pitching 

 went much against the grain, but was ultimately accom- 

 plished about half-an-hour after midnight. We were too 

 weary to be able to take much profit from the wealth of 

 supplies, but went soon to sleep, promising ourselves a 

 copious reward next day. 



