AN AUTUMN VISIT TO SPITZBERGEN. 401 



just beyond the mouth of a little river, and made for a fresh-water 

 lake lying at some distance — perhaps an English mile— inland 

 (something like eight miles from the anchorage where the smack 

 lay). We again found no birds, but an unlimited quantity of 

 sub-fossil marine mussel-shells of two species, of which the larger 

 was the commoner. I do not think I am exaggerating in saying 

 that a great many of these lay 100 feet, or even more above the 

 present level of the lake, which again is — I am afraid to guess 

 how high above the present level of the sea, but it must, I think, 

 be more than one hundred feet. These masses of shells which 

 lay above the level of the lake had not, I think, attained that 

 position by the upheaval of the land, but by being washed there, 

 perhaps in quite recent times, by the overflowing waters from the 

 lake at the time of the melting of the winter's snow, as they were 

 deposited at all levels, up to the height guessed at, on the sides 

 of the river-bed. They had, of course, reached the bed of the 

 present fresh-water tarn before that was raised out of the sea. 

 In the shallow water at the edge of the lake, where it flows into 

 the river, we saw two or three small fish. We had, unfortunately, 

 no hand -net with us, and all our efforts to secure either of them 

 were in vain. The largest was about six inches long, or hardly 

 so much ; the smallest would be perhaps two inches and a quarter. 

 I believe the only fresh-water fish known in any part of the Arctic 

 regions are species of Salmo. These looked to me rather deep for 

 such small specimens of Salmo, but did not get a sufficiently distinct 

 sight of them to be able to form any opinion. We followed the 

 course of the little river back to the coast. On the beach at this 

 point the harpooner found two pieces of hard stone with a surface 

 perfectly planed and polished by the action of ice. On the way 

 back, at a place where the cliffs were not more than a dozen feet 

 or so high, we landed at a miniature coal-mine cropping out in 

 the cliff-face ; a little vein of coal, about a yard or less broad by 

 not more than four or five feet deep, and rather less than a yard 

 from the surface. The coal, of which I have specimens, is very 

 soft and crumbly, and can only be quarried in the shape of small- 

 coal. A boat's crew from one of the smacks at anchor in the 

 harbour landed here, as we were leaving, to replenish their stock 

 of fuel. I was told that on the east shore of the harbour, opposite 

 to where we then were, excellent coal may be obtained in large 

 lumps. There is coal for some distance along the west side 



