THE CAPTAIxN OF THE BAIKAL 263 



clue, which presently steamed into the harbour. We 

 were all delighted to see again our friend the captain, 

 who told us that he had been delayed a fortnight off 

 Nijni-Kamchatsk on account of the prevailing foo-. 

 Moreo\'er, owing to the dangerous bar at the mouths 

 of the river as well as to the strong current (eleven 

 knots an hour), he had met with great difficulty in 

 landing his supplies, the more so as he had no launch 

 on board, and the unloading had to be done with the 

 aid of small boats, resulting in a great loss of time. 

 He had also visited the Anadyr and Korff bays, where 

 he had safely landed Dr. Bogoraz and his wife. He 

 informed us that he would never have been able to 

 pick us up on the coast, on account of the stormy 

 weather outside. Had we insisted on carrying out our 

 former plan to try Cape Shipounsky, we might have 

 had to spend the winter in Kamchatka! He was at 

 present bound for the ports of the Sea of Okhotsk, and 

 though we regretted to part with so obliging a captain, 

 there was no choice between a week's or a month's 

 journey by sea. I should mention that the crew we 

 had sent down the coast had duly reached Asatcha 

 inlet, and had returned a few days previously, bringing 

 back half a dozen heads of young rams \\hicl-i the men 

 had shot for meat, and saying that they had come 

 across large herds of sheep in the immediate neigh- 



