84 Prof. O. Heer on the last Discoveries 



surface : one of the vehicles was soon broken, and the dogs 

 would not be guided. Under such circumstances the explorers 

 were obliged to give up their enterprise. They had, however, 

 seen enough to understand that there was no hope there of 

 attaining in some degree the essential object of their voyage, 

 which was to collect fossil plants. 



Mr.Whymper therefore returned to the coast with his com- 

 panions, and proceeded to the great peninsula of Noursoak, in 

 the neighbourhood of which the vessel had some trouble 

 in finding a way through the labyrinth of icebergs which 

 filled these waters. They proceeded from the glacier of Tos- 

 sukatek, the jagged crest of which bounded the horizon. Upon 

 the peninsula of Noursoak Mr. Whymper met with a Dane 

 who had lived alone among the Esquimaux for twenty-four 

 years. The peninsula forms an elevated plateau traversed by 

 a range of mountains which attain a height of 6000 feet. 

 Upon one of these mountains, situated near Atanekerdluk, is 

 the principal deposit of the fossil plants of Greenland. Of 

 this I have already spoken, two years ago, in the pages of this 

 Review*. The remains are contained in a reddish-brown 

 rock, composed essentially of iron : this is literally filled with 

 them ; branches and leaves, fruits and seeds, are collected in 

 it pell-mell. Pieces of amber are scattered among the branches 

 which probably produced them. 



They first of all set to work upon this deposit, which is 

 situated in 70° N. lat., and at about 1100 feet above the sea. 

 For three days Mr. Whymper, Mr. Brown, the interpreter 

 Tegner, and eleven Esquimaux were at work releasing these 

 plants from their iron prison and bringing them to the light of 

 day. A considerable quantity (about 10 quintals) of them 

 was carried down to the shore. 



When this digging was completed, Mr. Whymper and his 

 companions traversed the Waigat to reach the Island of Disco. 

 This is equally moimtainous ; and the coast rises from the sea 

 in scarped walls of rock with wild rents and fissures. The 

 only inhabited place in the island is Onnartuvarsok, opposite 

 Atanekerdluk. Here also deposits of lignite are found ; they 

 extend along the eastern side of Disco^ and are covered by a 

 layer of sandstone, above which there are thick beds of basalt. 

 The coal contains amber ; and here and there in the sandstone 

 there are fossil plants — for example, near Ujararsusuk and 

 KUdliset. Here were discovered magnificent leaves of Pla- 

 tanus, large fruits of Magnolia, and branches and cones of a 

 Sequoia {S. Couttstce). Towards the north of Kftdliset a narrow 



* "Les E^gions polaires du 2sord " (Bibl. Univ. January 1867, p. 51). 



