70 CRUISE OF THE STEAMER CORWIN. 



not, however, l)ef'oi'e f^otliiin" my lliinl li.illi ilniiiii; the day in Ihc (-"Id watci's of tin- rivci-. 

 Thus the day pass('<l, and by iii^hl fall 1 he cliillini; effects of tlie work had coinplctely Ix-iiuiulieil 

 me with cold, and w(^ pitclied cami) just liefure the commencement of a di'enchiuLC rain. 



We liad now . trained a point, as accui'ately as I C(juld estimate, ahnut li\c hundred miles 

 from the coast, liavius accom])lished the distance in tweidy-seven days" time. Tiie journey 

 tlms far had l)een made without serious accident, and our frail canoe was still servicc^able, not- 

 withstanding the roijgli usage to wliirli it had lieen subjected. The condition of the i-iver was 

 now .sucli tliat it was not prudent to procee(| further witli tlu^ bidarka, f( v should any accident 

 occur we sJioidd have no nu'aris of i-eturning to the coast. No nuiterial of amy description 

 COiUd be found with wliicli to const rnct .-i. r.-ift, it being fully two hnnd)'i'd miles to the nearest 

 timber growth. In view of the fact. I determined to leave the canoe and jjroceed on foot as far 

 as circumstances i)ernnt, hoping in the mean time to reach the source of tli(> i-ivei-. 



( )n viewing the stream l'i-oin ;i neighlioring liill it l)ecanii' \ei-y exidi^nt tli.at \vc li;id passed 

 the head of boat navigation and a, point considei'ably aliove that ti'avele(l by the nati\es. The 

 river was now very nai'row. and in most pla,c(>s the water did not exceed a foot in deptl^. 



The following morning. .Inly .".1. as we made preiJarations for starting, the rain began to 

 fall in torrents, and I did notconsidei- it advisalde to proceed. ])uringalull in the storm 1 

 (examined the river above foi' abotd two miles, but found no change for the better; i-apid fol- 

 lowed rajiid. and with oui- pi'evious ex])erience in tlie work. I realized that it would be impos- 

 sible to get a boat through in safety. After returinug to cam]) we hauled the canoe out and 

 carried it to a i)lace of safety, where it was concealed. 



Early the l'oll()wing morning we resinned oui- journey, taking with us a small (piantity of 

 provision, togethei- with the instruments. The rain had now turned to .sleet, and, driven 1)y 

 the tierce blast, it cut us to the (pii(d<. Thus pelted by the mei'ciless storm we continued to 

 follow the river. The sui'rounding region, a i-olling plain, was ])artly covered with snow and 

 water. The vast rainfall seemed to have inundated the entire country, and at times we were 

 obliged to wade Ihi-ough the half-frozen moor.s, which extended to the very ba,nks of the 

 stream. 



Thus we journeyed along, our work l)eing unmarked by incident of note. Late in the day 

 we gained an eininenci^ on the right bank, which I determined to ascend for the pui-jjose of 

 obtaining a view of the surrounding country. Leaving Nelson at the foot of the hill to pi'e- 

 pare coffee, I clambered uji the steej) sid(^s, taking with me only the com])a.ss. The scene which 

 met my gaze upon gaining the height was one of utter desolation. In every direction, as far 

 as the eye could reach, the dreary expanse of tundra, covered with snuill lakes and half-frozen 

 marshes, stretched awa\- in I he distance. T\\i' Noiltak, no longer the stately i-iver which flowed 

 into the sea, had degemrati'il into a mere rand)Iing creek, the waters of which would not Hoat 

 even our light canoe. Not a vestige of lite was to be seen. Even the hardy water- fowl, that 

 seek the solitudes of the far north, seemed to have forsaken the region. 



As I stood on the height, pcltcil by the storm and chilled by the fierce Arctic blasts, my 

 thoughts turned back to the home of other da.ys. The fearful contrast of tlu^ scene before me 

 and the other, so distinctly ])ictured on the pages of memory, left no room for ex^jression, and 

 with a sigh of I'elii'l" I t iirued and joincMl Nelson below. Upon reaching t he spot I I'onnd him 

 vainly endeavoring to siai't a lire. There was no wood of any ilescription to br loimd. and the 

 d(!ad gi'ass was so thoroughly so.-iked as to utterly refuse to ignite: a-ud. cold and fatigued as we 

 were, we started back tow.-ird oui' camp, about twelve miles below, and at a late hour we 

 reached it. 



We had n(.)W gone beyond t he head of (•.•inoe navigation and had rearliiMl. |iract ically s])e;d<- 

 ing, the headwaters of the river. The v.ist number of l;i,kes which covci'ed the face of the 

 country, all of which were drained by tlie ri\'er. made it evident th.it it ci>uld not lie traced to 

 one source. Above us the No.'itak divideil into several branches. ;iiid as none were navigable, 

 further jjrogress was manifestly im])ossibl{>. Every effort had been maile to ;iccoini)lish the 

 object of the expedition, and now that we had achieved all that lay in oiir powi-r, 1 determined 

 to retreat without delay. 



