44 



NEW LAND. 



never seen any animal of the kind before, I felt sure that they 

 must be polar oxen. I immediately got under way for an attack. 

 It seemed so curious to be stalking these mysterious animals, 

 about which I knew absolutely nothing, not even whether they 

 were shy or not. 



I made my way cautiously along, but unfortunately the wind 

 was unsteady, and, before I knew what had happened, they had 

 winded me, and were gone. When I caught sight of them again, 

 they were up on the sand-hills, in full gallop southward. Need- 



SOUTHERN PAKT OF RICE STRAIT. 



less to say, I started after them at the quickest pace I knew, but 

 the animals were considerably quicker, and the distance between 

 us became greater and greater. I would not throw up the 

 game, however, particularly as I had all the day before me, and so 

 I continued to follow them along the bottom of the valley. To 

 my astonishment, they soon turned off into a large valley filled 

 with boulders, which cut into the mountain, and was almost 

 impassable for human beings. Nor would any other cloven- 

 footed animal that I know of have done such a thing a goat, 



