18 H. P. STEENSBY. 
Along the shores of Baffin Land the Arctic Current prevents the formation 
of smooth winter-ice off the precipitous, projecting clifis, and permits of it 
only in the bays. Far to the north, where the shore is protected by the 
Bylot Island cutting off a large part of the sea, a small Eskimo tribe resides. 
Between Bylot Island and the narrowest part of Davis Strait an almost 
continuous fringe of rather smooth ice is formed, the formation of which is 
rendered possible by the presence of the many smaller peninsulas which are 
usually continued as shoals, and upon which the larger masses of ice run 
aground and collect as a bulwark against the destructive pack-ice. South of 
Cape Dyer the current is so strong that winter-ice can be formed in the 
bays only. On the evidence, partly of journals kept by whalers through a long 
series of years, and partly of his own and Hatt’s observations, Boas’ has 
made a close study of the ice conditions in Cumberland Sound. By a con- 
striction, the centre of which is situated 65° N. lat. and 65° W. long. 
Cumberland Sound is divided into an outer and an inner part, of which 
the outer, owing to the strong tidal currents, never freezes. In the inner, 
an ice-covering is formed every autumn, the concave edge of which usually 
rests on two projections situated opposite to each other, and does not 
increase further in extent during winter. When the ice, during autumn, has 
attained considerable thickness, and has been strengthened by the freezing-in 
of icebergs and floes, it enlarges no further, as the pack-ice set in motion 
by violent currents is able to prevent an enlargement of the sheet from the 
addition of fresh masses of ice. Consequently, the extent of the ice is 
wholly dependent on weather conditions during autumn. The smaller fjord- 
branches freeze even in October, and the open parts of Cumberland Sound 
in November; but in the case of storms the ice may break up once or 
several times before it ultimately becomes permanent. And in the narrow 
entrances to the interior fjords there is open water throughout the whole 
winter, owing to the violent currents. Throughout June the ice may still 
be traversed by means of sledges, and not until in July or even in August 
does the ice break up. The fact should be noted that the ice does not 
disappear by thawing, but as the result of the destructive power of the 
waves. Therefore, so long as the winter-ice has a broad edging of pack-ice, 
it remains. 
In Baffin Land reindeer are found, and here as elsewhere they migrate 
to and fro between the coast and the interior, but they hardly occur in 
such great numbers as on the northern peninsulas of the continent*. Of 
aquatic mammals the Ringed Seal is the most important, both on account 
of its abundance and because it is constantly present, whether the sea is open 
or is ice-bound”. On the other hand, the larger species of seal leave 
the coast when the sea freezes over, and the same applies to the walrus, 
Boas, VI. 
2 Boas, II,'p. 438. 
>7Boas, Пр. 471. 
