io HUNTING THE SEA OTTER. 



should on no account leave the bridge, remarking casually 

 that it would only be a matter of three or four days. But 

 the skipper, who had thrown up a comfortable appointment 

 on shore to accompany us, seemed to view it in a different 

 light. A compromise was, however, effected by which he 

 was to offer his services to the Japanese captain, remaining 

 on deck as much as possible, especially at night ; while we 

 promised very solemnly to keep him on the alert in the event 

 of danger, or when the drowsy god proved too much for weak 

 human nature. It need hardly be said that this promise 

 was religiously kept for the next three days by means of 

 alarming intelligence of stormy skies, breakers ahead, and 

 other imaginary perils, whenever the unfortunate skipper 

 lay down a relaxation which, having nothing to do, he often 

 indulged in. He invariably declared, on being awakened, 

 that he had just come off deck. 



At ten o'clock on the fourth day we were abreast of 

 Tchoochee, an extensive fishing town, backed with a large 

 blunt-topped hill completely covered with pines. The 

 coastline in the immediate vicinity was fringed with hills 

 more or less precipitious which rose to a height apparently 

 about three hundred feet, their outline was pretty regular 

 till they terminated in perpendicular cliffs. The Light- 

 house of Boie indicated to vessels arriving the dangerous 

 strand. At three on the fifth day we were off Scindai 

 Bay, the scene of Snow's first disaster. Here the scenery 

 was very beautiful, the coast being deeply indented, the 

 mountains higher and splendidly timbered to their very 

 summits. It is here that the wonderful lake or inlet 

 studded with a thousand islands and so frequently depicted 

 in Japanese Kakimonos, though never yet explored by any 

 but the natives, is said to be situated. 



At seven o'clock on the sixth day, a Wednesday, we had 

 passed Cape Shiriya, the Whale Back, and the Rattler rock, 

 the last so-called after one of our vessels wrecked on it. 

 At noon, after a calm, uneventful passage, we dropped 

 anchor in the beautiful, land-locked bay of Hakodate ; the 



