LAND AT LAST 421 



from the wind where you could stretch your limbs a lit- 

 tle ! We had not had that since last March, on board 

 the Frani. It was long, however, before everything was 

 in order, and we would not move in until it was quite 

 finished. 



The day we had skinned our last walruses I had 

 taken several tendons from their backs, thinking they 

 might be very useful when we made ourselves clothes for 

 the winter, for we were entirely without thread for that 

 purpose. Not until a few days afterwards (September 

 26th) did I recollect that these tendons had been left on 

 the ice beside the carcasses. I went out there to look for 

 them, but found, to my sorrow, that gulls and foxes had 

 long since made away with them. It was some comfort, 

 however, to find traces of a bear, which must have been 

 at the carcasses during the night, and as I looked about 

 I caught sight of Johansen running after me, making 

 signs and pointing out towards the sea. I turned that 

 way, and there was a large bear, walking to and fro and 

 looking at us. We had soon fetched our guns, and 

 while Johansen remained near the land to receive the 

 bear if it came that way, I made a wide circuit round it 

 on the ice to drive it landward, if it should prove to be 

 fris^htened. In the meantime, it had lain down out there 

 beside some holes, I suppose to watch for seals. I stole 

 up to it ; it saw me and at first came nearer, but then 

 thought better of it, and moved away again, slowly and 

 majestically, out over the new ice. I had no great de- 



