BY SLEDGE AND KAYAK 303 



the seals are few and far between, there are birds still, I 

 am thankful to say. Last night a couple of ivory-gulls 

 {Larus cburncus), were bold enough to settle down on 

 our sealskin, close beside the tent wall, and pecked at the 

 blubber. They were sent off once or twice, but returned. 

 If the meat falls short we must resort to catching birds." 



Thus the days passed by, one exactly like the other; 

 we waited and waited for the snow to melt, and worked 

 desultorily meanwhile at getting ourselves ready to pro- 

 ceed. This life reminded me of some Eskimos who 

 journeyed up a fjord to collect grass for hay ; but when 

 they arrived at their destination found it quite short, and 

 so settled down and waited till it was lono^ enoucrh to cut. 

 A suitable condition of the snow was long in coming. 

 On June 29th I write: ''Will not the temperature rise 

 sufficiently to make something like an effectual clearance 

 of the snow } We try to pass the time as best we can in 

 talking of how delightful it will be when we get home, 

 and how we shall enjoy life and all its charms, and go 

 through a calculation of chances as to how soon that may 

 be ; but sometimes, too, we talk of how well we will 

 arrange for the winter in Spitzbergen, if we should not 

 reach home this year. If it should come to that, we may 

 not even get so far, but have to winter on some place 

 ashore here — no, it can never come to that ! 



"Sunday, June 30th. So this is the end of June, and 

 we are about the same place as when we began the 

 month. And the state of the snow.^ Well, better it 



