CRUISE OF THE STEAMER CO.RWIN. 27 



more into the clear, warm suiisliii)e; and as we conteniijlatcd tlie beauty of the day I coukl not 

 help but think how teri'ilily di-eary and desolate life must be in such a hole when the sun had 

 gone to the far s<juth and the ircm grasp of the long Arctic night was laid iipon the silent earth. 



In the mean time the sound of the ax and saw was waking the echoes of tlie silent hills, and 

 the birds, aroused by the strange commotion, fluttered nerv(jusly through the dense foliage, 

 becoming easy victims to Mr. Townsend's insatiable desire for specimens. 



All day we steamed ahead, gradually leaving the Jade Mountain behind us and apprduching 

 the mountains dimly visil)le in the southeast. Toward night we reached the remarkable high 

 clay bluffs running in ou the river from the south. This marks the si:)ot where a portage exists, 

 whereby a short range of mountains bearing south from the Jade Mountain can be reached in 

 one day. This range separates the Kowak from the Selawilc River, or rather fi'oin its north 

 branch, as it is divided some 150 miles from its mouth. The course of the Kowak is here east- 

 southeast by compass. 



A light rain set in during the afternoon and steadily increased until about lo p. m.. when 

 ■ it ceased long enough to enable us to camp. 



I am convinced by the evidence of the natives that close communication could be estab- 

 lished between the Selawik, Kowak, and Noritak Rivers at this point. It is more than probable 

 that the course of the latter str(m-m is nearly parallel to that of the Kowak, and is se])arated from 

 it by the range of mountains of which tlie Jade Mounlnin is a remarkable feature. It is also 

 more than likely that the Noatak turns here more to tlu^ northwest and continues this course 

 until l)r(mght uj) liy the coast range, when its course is changed toward the south, and it so con- 

 tinues to flow until it emi)ties into Hotham Inlet. 



All night the rain came down in a steady stream, and the river rose so rapidly that I feared 

 our camp would l)e washed away. When we turned out in the morning the meml)ers of the 

 party emerged from tlieir wet blankets like half-drowned rats, cold, wet, and miserable, and 

 caused me to wonder if the originator of the expression. "Pnt a wet blanket on it," ever had 

 any practical experience of the full force and significance of the simile. Several times during 

 the day before all of tlie party were compelled to get overboard and shove the launch off a 

 sand-bar, and in doing so were wet through and through ; but these discomforts were treated 

 with indifference. It was only when the rain steadily poured down and flooded their .sleeping 

 quarters that the jiarty seemed dejected; and I was not surprised when I turned out that they 

 came forward in a body .and, like ( )liver Twist, requested more nourishment. I cannot say that 

 I experienced as much indignation as Mr. Bumble is reported to have felt in the case of Oliver, 

 and an additional .allowance of coffee was served out. The sun soon came out, and having eaten 

 a hot breakfast tlie natural buoyancy of the party asserted itself and the night's discomforts 

 were forgotten.- 



During the morning we passed the village Un-nah-tak. but no n.atives were observed, they 

 having as yet not taken up their quarters for the summer's fishing. After the rain myriads of 

 mosquitoes came out of the swampy lands, and our lives were made miserable by these pests. 

 A slight relief was obtained by covering all exposed p.arts of the body with a thick varnish 

 made of tar, gum arable, and olive oil; but even with this disagreeable prcn^entive our suffer- 

 ings were simply indescribable. 



Towai'd i o'clock the rain beg.an again, and when we stopped to camji, at 10 p. m., the very 

 flood-gates of heaven seemed to have been opened. Our cam]) was m.ade under the protecting 

 branches of a dense growth of spruce which bordered the stream. The timber along tliis ])art of 

 the river is as heavy as seen anywhere; the trees are from eighty to one hundred feet high, 

 and from ten to fourteen inches in diameter. Some trees were observed much larger, but they 

 formed the exception to the general rule. 



The morning of July 8, the anniversary of the departure from the Coririii of the first ex])edi- 

 ion for the exploration of the Kowak, was ushered in by a terrific rain-storjii, made doubly dis- 

 agreeable by a strong southeast gale which blew directly in our faces, and our progress was neces- 

 sarily very slow and tedious. The shores of the river were as widely separated as ever during the 

 day's advance, but the channel became narrow and intricate. Sand-bars, extending in every 

 direction, and gravel beds made the work of finding the channel very difficult. About noon 



