214 ^I"^' ARCTIC JOURNAL 



then pointing to mine to show me that I had not changed in 

 looks since last he saw me. 



Our next stopping-place w^as Upernavii^:, where we remained 

 just long enough to pick up a few dogs, after which we put in 

 at Tassiusak, the most northerly inhabited spot in the world 

 belonging to any government. This place boasts of but a sin- 

 gle wooden house. We here still further increased our stock 

 of dogs, and then left. The next day we revisited the Duck 

 Islands, but this year the sport did not compare with that of 

 two years ago, when the birds were so plentiful that one could 

 hardly walk w^ithout fear of stepping on them. This year it 

 was a month later in the season, and not only were the young 

 ducks hatched, but the old mother ducks were out teaching the 

 duckUngs to swim, and the islands consequently were all but 

 deserted. I devoted my time to the gathering of down for the 

 bedding in our Arctic home, and secured about thirty pounds. 



We now headed for the ever-dreaded Melville Bay, my first 

 experience with which I shall never forget. We were then 

 three weeks in crossing, and it was during that time that Mr. 

 Peary had the misfortune to have his leg broken. This time 

 everything looked favorable ; we had no fog, and there was no 

 ice in sight from the crow's nest. Captain Bartlett was deter- 

 mined to break the record in the crossing of this water — thirty- 

 six hours — on this his first voyage to the Arctic regions. In 

 twenty-four hours and fifty minutes we reached the Eskimo 

 settlement at Cape York, Melville Bay behind us and still no 

 ice to be seen. 



