812 THE VOYAGE OF THE JE ANNETTE. 



ing but sand spits about them, with no chance of game. 

 Moreover they had just seen a crow flying overhead, 

 across the river and in among the hills. The crow, in 

 the Arctic regions, keeps among human beings, and 

 this decided Nindemann to cross the river in hopes of 

 reaching; some natives on the other side, or some game. 

 They had to move with caution, for there were large 

 open places in the ice. When part way across Noros 

 complained of illness. He had been spitting blood 

 twice. Nindemann, who could move more quickly, 

 bade him follow, while he kept on to the foot of the 

 hills. When he reached the edge of the river there 

 was nothing to be seen. The hills thrust themselves 

 into the river so that they had to take to the ice ; and 

 so, sometimes on the shore, sometimes on the river, 

 they kept on their way, but could see no signs either 

 of game or of natives. 



At length at dark they came to a ravine in the hills, 

 where they gathered some drift-wood for a fire, and 

 finding no Arctic willow they were driven to taking a 

 little hot water and eating again of the seal-skin. They 

 could discover no shelter, and so they dug a hole in 

 the snow, piled up some blocks of snow to keep off the 

 wind as well as they could, and crawled into their 

 blanket bags. They could not sleep, and would gladly 

 have risen and pushed on, but the night was too dark 

 for them to see their way. 



At dawn of Monday, the 17th, they started down 

 the ravine again and followed the river bank to the 

 south, making but slow progress, so rough was the 

 walking. They halted in the middle of the forenoon, 

 made a fire and boiled some water which they took 

 with their seal-skin ; they stayed there an hour, trying 

 to mend in a fashion the soles of their boots, which 



