354 FARTHEST NORTH 



and consists almost exclusively of small and large — gen- 

 erally very large — blocks of stone, with, I should say, 

 occasional stationary crags. The blocks arc in a meas- 

 ure rounded off, but I have found no striation on them. 

 The whole island barel}' rises above the snow-field in 

 which it lies, and which slopes in a gradual decline down 

 to the surrounding ice. On our west there is a bare 

 island, somewhat higher, which we have seen for several 

 days. Along the shore there is a decided strand-line 

 (terrace). North of us are two small islets and a small 

 rock or skerry. 



"As I mentioned before (August 13th) I had at 

 first supposed the sound on our west to be Rawlinson s 

 Sound, but this now appeared impossible, as there was 

 nothing to be seen of Dove Glacier, by which it is 

 bounded on one side. If this was now our position, we 

 must have traversed the glacier and W'ilczek Land with- 

 out noticing any trace of either; for we had travelled 

 westward a good half degree south of Cape Buda-Pesth. 

 The possibility that we could be in this region we conse- 

 quently now held to be finally excluded. We must have 

 come to a new land in the western part of Franz Josef 

 Land or Archipelago, and so far west that we had seen 

 nothing of the countries discovered by Payer. But so 

 far west that we had not even seen anything of Oscar's 

 Land, which ought to be situated in 82" N. and 52° E. .^ 

 This was indeed incomprehensible; but was there any 

 other explanation '^. 



