8 MARION EXPEDITION TO DAVIS STRAIT AND BAFFIN BAY 



In the intervals between boating' oflf fresh water and (lumping; oil 

 into the bunkers from the drums on deck, much information was 

 obtained about the hard life of the people who live in Labrador 

 throughout the year. Some of the natives had distinct Eskimo fea- 

 tures, others showed traces of Indian blood, while still others were 

 ap])arently pure white. All talked in an old-fashioned English 

 dialect. 



The peo})Ie lived in tiny houses and shacks set back a short distance 

 from a few small wharves that Avere built mostly of poles. In sheds 

 on the wharves the summer's catch of fish was salted and piled like 

 cordwood. There were numerous P]skimo dogs about, groups of 

 which from time to time engaged in howling choruses. The weird 

 liowling could be heard out at the ship's anchorage above the noises 

 of the Avind. Some of the better houses had near them garden patches 

 from 20 to 30 feet square. These gardens were always fenced off 

 Avith poles brought out from the forests of the interior to protect 

 them from being torn up by the dogs. In them we saw nothing 

 but a miserable growth of cabbagelike greens. 



By 2 p. m. on Siniday, July 22, the gale had blown itself out, per- 

 mitting the Marlon, to get under way. A stop w-as made just seaward 

 of the mottled black and white rocks of Spotted Island where an 

 oceanographic station Avas occupied. Until the 25th the ship Avas 

 engaged off Labrador taking tAvo lines of oceanographic stations 

 located more or less at right angles to the general trend of the coast. 

 The first line extended seaAvard 120 miles from Spotted Island, Avhile 

 the second Avas taken from a point 120 miles off' Bulldog Island to 

 a point 2 miles off' the same. In general, fine Aveather prevailed 

 throughout this time. In making the coast about Bulldog Island 

 Ave Avere throAvn upon our oAvn resources, as A^ery fcAV aids to naviga- 

 tion, like buoys, lighthouses, and beacons are maintained north of 

 the Strait of Belle Isle. The best aids available consisted of prom- 

 inent landmarks such as mountain peaks, small islands, and reefs 

 aAvash. 



We Avere someAvhat apprehensive as to the behavior of the Marion 

 in " laying to '"* Avhile the deep-sea observations Avere being made. It 

 is quite important not only for the accuracy of the observations but 

 also for the reliable operation of the Avater bottles that the Avire to 

 Avhich the instruments are clamped remain as nearly A'ertical as pos- 

 sible. When it is bloAving Avith any great strength, most ships, espe- 

 cially if high sided, Avith a deckhouse, experience considerable drift 

 to leeAvard and also forge ahead. On the United States Coast Guard 

 cutters used on the international ice patrol service this drifting off' 

 causes such a bad slant to the sounding Avire that the station Avork 

 often has to be abandoned until the Avind moderates. Naturally it 

 Avas very pleasing to find that on the Marion Ave Avere able to keep 

 the wire and instruments perpendicular throughout the station AvorK 

 under all sorts of weather conditions. A kick ahead, first on one 

 motor and then on the other, as she fell off on either side of the eye 

 of the Avind did the trick, even in a strong breeze and high sea. The 

 fact that the Marlon possessed tAvin* screAvs made such maneuvering 

 possible, and this handiness. by the Avay, Avas only one of the fine 

 (jnalities to be displayed by the little craft throughout the entire 

 expedition. 



