A YORKSHIRE NATURALIST 171 



from the ice-sheet were much too gigantic to be dis- 

 charged from such a country as he supposed Green- 

 land to be, especially that such a phenomenon as 

 the Humboldt glacier, fifty miles across from side to 

 side, was an impossibility under his conditions. 

 It is needless to ask, after Dr. Nansen's gallant 

 explorations, which of us was right. 



In the summer of 1877 we fixed our holiday 

 quarters at Dunoon, in order to be within reach of 

 Laggan Bay, which I was anxious to submit to a 

 further examination. Having arranged with my 

 friend, Mr. Wunsch, to meet us there, and having 

 ascertained that, if we would be content with such 

 sleeping quarters as a shepherd's hut could afford, 

 we not only could stay all night, but should be 

 heartily welcomed, my wife and I found our way 

 there as best we could. On reaching Corrie, our 

 first business was to secure a boat and boatmen to 

 take us to Laggan Bay ; but this was no easy task, 

 as most of the many boats we saw were private 

 property, and most of the fine manly race of fellows 

 were fishermen. At last we met a miserable-looking 

 creature, who for an exorbitant fee consented to row 

 us ; and, utterly unable to find anything better, we 

 accepted his services. It took us nearly an hour to 

 reach the stream that comes down from Glen Sannox. 

 Another fifteen minutes was lost through the un- 

 fortunate discovery that a beautiful young seal was 

 reposing on some rocks a little to the north of the 

 Sannox stream. This seal our boatman insisted upon 



