Finner Whales 



enters and recedes from these various fjords 

 according to the wind's direction. You may 

 enter a fjord practically free from ice, and the 

 wind may veer round, blowing strongly from 

 an opposite direction, when the ice drifts back, 

 completely blocking up the open water. Owing 

 to this, especially in the late autumn, ships are 

 particularly careful to leave before the hard 

 frosts set in, for they may in this case be com- 

 pelled to remain in this inhospitable and desolate 

 land throughout the long Northern winter. 



This had actually happened to a crew of 

 sealers the autumn previous to our visit, in fact, 

 our steamer was the first vessel to put in an 

 appearance and to offer aid to these men after 

 their terrible experience. We had observed 

 smoke rising as it were from the ground, and 

 so soon as the anchor was dropped and a boat 

 lowered, some of us went ashore to investigate. 

 We found a sealing vessel embedded in the ice 

 close to the shore. On a flat piece of ground we 

 discovered whence the smoke came. Then two 

 men appeared, one a Norwegian and the other a 

 Lapp. They were both dressed in long coats 

 that they had made from skins of reindeer which 

 they had killed themselves. The Norwegian, 

 who spoke English well, told me the story of how 

 they had been caught late the previous autumn 

 in the ice, and why they had been obliged to 

 remain where they were. They left their vessel, 



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