ON SHORT COMMONS 227 



to provide for the pot. Harvie- Brown went south, and 

 returned with only a few dunlins and a grey plover ; he 

 had chased a bar-tailed godwit for some distance near 

 the seashore, but had not got within shot. I had met 

 with no better luck, for although I had brought down 

 a dozen dunlins and ,^rey phalaropes as they fed on the 

 margin of a lake I had been able only to secure three. 

 At the first step I took in the direction of my prizes, 

 I sank lower than knee-deep into the black mud. My 

 gun also snapped at a willow-grouse within easy range. 

 We returned to our quarters somewhat down-hearted ; the 

 gale was blowing more fiercely than ever, a thick mist 

 covered the sea, and gusts of wind drove the rain into the 

 wreck. We cooked ourselves a supper of fried dunlins,, 

 and allowed to each a weak basin of Liebig's extract- 

 of-meat soup, and half a slice of bread. About midnight,, 

 as we smoked our pipes and listened to the howling and 

 spitting of the wind and rain outside, our thoughts followed 

 the forlorn -hope party we had sent out, and we doubted 

 whether it would meet with better luck than we had. 

 This party consisted of Cocksure, the Samoyede, and 

 the half-breed. They had gone on what might be called, 

 in a double sense, a wild-goose chase, in pursuit of the 

 flock of geese I had seen the day before migrating across 

 the water into the tundra. We went to bed hoping 

 against hope, and were awakened towards four by the 

 noisy arrival of our envoys, carrying back in triumph 

 eleven old geese and five young ones. One of the 

 party had taken the boat up the river upon which I 

 had seen the flock. The other two followed, each keep- 

 ing upon opposite banks. They came upon the geese 

 a few versts higher up than the spot at which I had seen 

 them, and falling upon them had made a grand haul of 

 birds. The laying in of this stock of provisions lifted a 



