BACK TO CIVILIZATION 449 



Walsingham, first sighted by Davis in 1565. This 

 was a raw gray day, but the sky was clear and the 

 weather fine when at half past seven the following 

 morning land was sighted and we hauled in for it 

 at once. The ice was heavily jammed along shore, 

 and we skirted its edge, keeping a sharp lookout for 

 game. 



In the afternoon, when off Leopold Island two 

 bears were discovered on the jam a long distance 

 away. The ice was too heavy to put the schooner 

 in, and it was impossible to approach them in a boat. 

 We pulled in as close to the jam as safety would 

 permit, and I decided to try a few shots from deck. 

 Raising the sights on my 30-40 as high as they would 

 go, I blazed away, and at the fourth shot one of the 

 bears dropped, while the other took to the water 

 inside the heavy floe. A boat put me on the ice 

 and I was able to walk to within fifty yards of the 

 wounded bear, whose hind quarters had been broken 

 down by the shot. He was biting furiously at the 

 wound and growling. One bullet back of his fore 

 shoulder put an instant end to his suffering. 



A heavy swell was running in from the north, 

 driving the ice, and I feared we should lose the game, 

 but one of the sailors came to my assistance, jumped 

 from lump to lump of ice, some scarcely large enough 

 to bear his weight, reached the pan alongside of which 

 the carcass lay, fastened a line around its neck, and 

 presently we had it in open water. 



While we were engaged in this something went 

 wrong with the Jeanie's auxiliary engine, and she 



