Return to Kenai 
branches twisted and stuck up at every imagin- 
able angle. 
After this we hunted the burnt country below 
my camp, going several miles without seeing 
anything but a porcupine, which Elia killed and 
took back to camp with him. I wanted, if pos- 
sible, to get a barren cow moose, as I had promised 
to try and bring a pair of whole skins out for the 
Victoria (B.C.) local museum. I could have 
shot one or two with a calf at foot, but could 
not bring myself to do so. I thought that I 
might easily get one on my way back to the lake 
later on, but the opportunity did not occur. 
Had I not wanted one, the probability is I 
should have seen at least a dozen. 
The next day I took Shanghai out on to the 
mountain side where we could spy the country. 
We were but a couple of miles from camp, and 
could do better here by watching than by 
wandering all over the woods. Unfortunately 
a very heavy mist suddenly came on, which 
turned to a steady drizzle lasting the whole day. 
This was too hopeless and annoying as my few 
days were slipping by fast. I should have 
to be at Kenai under ten days, as the Bertha 
was timed to make her last trip to the inlet for 
the winter, and I had engaged a schooner to 
take me from the village back to Tyonak in 
order to catch her. No one seemed at all certain 
whether she would arrive a few days earlier or 
267 
