804 THE VOYAGE OF THE JEANNETTE. 



bird flew away. The drift-wood turned out to be a 

 kayak turned bottom up. They broke it out of the 

 snow, but found nothing under it, and resumed their 

 journey. 



When they halted half an hour later, and gathered 

 some bits of wood for a fire, eight or ten ptarmigans 

 appeared within about fifty yards of them. Nindemann 

 took the rifle and crawled half the distance, when he 

 had three or four in line. He fired and brought down 

 one only, which they cooked as well as they could, and 

 made their dinner off it, but the bird is only about as 

 large as a pigeon and has but little meat on it. 



The river ran past a low bluff, and the two men as 

 they made their way along the bank sometimes tried 

 the top of the bank, but were hindered by the deep, 

 soft snow, and sometimes the edge of the river, where 

 the walking was better, except where the bank left no 

 room for passage. About three o'clock they came upon 

 another stream flowing in from the west, and followed 

 its northern bank for a mile, until they could come to a 

 good crossing, when they got upon the other bank and 

 regained the main stream. An hour later they came 

 upon a big flat boat shoved up on the beach, but so 

 broken up that it was unfit for use. It was the grain 

 raft which Captain De Long noted on the 15th. Here 

 they took a short rest and then started on again. A 

 little before dark they saw something to the westward, 

 which, in the uncertain light, they took to be huts. As 

 they came nearer, the objects began to move, and they 

 saw that they were deer. Nindemann went cautiously 

 toward them until he came within a thousand yards ; 

 some of the deer were lying down, and some were 

 browsing. He got clown upon his hands and knees and 

 crawled within three hundred yards, but the wind was 



