72 BERTHA'S VISIT TO HER 



it was a little more exposed, by the dissolving of 

 the ice ; and in the end of the summer of 1801 

 he could distinctly see that it was the frozen 

 carcase of some enormous animal. He con- 

 tinued to watch it till the year 1804, when the 

 ice having melted earlier and to a greater 

 degree than usual, the carcase became entirely 

 disengaged, and fell down from the ice-cliff on 

 an accessible part of the shore. The fisherman 

 carried away both the tusks, and so well had the 

 ice preserved the ivory, that he sold them for 

 fifty rubles. This circumstance having come 

 to the knowledge of Mr. Adams in 1806, he 

 travelled to the spot to examine the animal, but 

 he found the body greatly mutilated ; much of 

 the flesh had been taken away by the natives 

 to feed their dogs, and one of the fore legs had 

 been carried off, probably by the white bears. 

 The rest of the skeleton was entire ; the head 

 was uninjured, even the pupil of the eye was 

 still distinguishable ; and the ears were well 

 covered with bristly hair. A large quantity of 

 the skin remained, which was extremely thick 

 and heavy ; and there was a long black mane 

 on the neck, the stiff bristles of which were 

 more than a foot in length. 



" About thirty pounds weight of reddish brown 

 bristly hair was collected in the mud, into which 

 it had been trampled by the bears while de- 

 vouring the carcase, as well as a quantity of 



