AN AUTUMN VISIT TO SPITZBERGEN. 445 



October 1. Lat. at noon, 72° 7' N., long. 18° 29' E.— A short 

 but hard shower of rain between 5 and 6 a.m. ; wind round to 

 S. and S. by E. all day. Only two or three Kittiwakes and 

 a Fulmar or two on going on deck this morning. A little later 

 I saw what I think was a Guillemot flying in the distance. After 

 midday thirty or forty Kittiwakes followed the ship. One or two 

 short rain-showers in the early part of the afternoon, between 

 1 and 2.30 ; about 4 p.m. the wind freshened. By the middle of 

 the afternoon Kittiwakes had nearly deserted us,— that is, there 

 were only a few in sight, and they were not constantly following 

 us as before, — and Fulmars were less numerous to-day than 

 hitherto. Two or three Kittiwakes to-day (as before on Sept. 28th) 

 tried to nibble, while on the wing, at the vane, which is a frayed 

 strip of red bunting, apparently supposing it to be meat. 



October 2. Lat. at noon, 71° 30', long. E. G. 21° 20'.— Rain all 

 night, and through the morning until after 4 p.m. About thirty 

 or forty Kittiwakes following us shortly before noon, after which 

 the number fluctuated, and for some time was much less; at 

 1 p.m. there were probably more than the above numbers, and 

 at this time three Skuas were among them, two being apparently 

 black-breasted and one white ; but as I thought for some time 

 that the white-breasted one was of the whole-coloured variety, 

 I feel inclined to doubt whether more, or even all, of those which 

 I thought were w T hole-coloured might not have proved white- 

 breasted on closer inspection, but believe this was not the case. 

 By the middle of the afternoon, as yesterday, the Kittiwakes 

 had nearly left us, as well as the Skuas. Petrels again not so 

 numerous. 



October 3. Temperature, 10.30 a.m., air 50*9, s. water 50-18; 

 5 p.m., air 51*26, s. water 50. — Dead calm from 1.30 to 8.30 a.m., 

 then west breeze ; fog to southwards preventing us from getting 

 a sight of land. At 9.80 a solitary Fulmar seen; at 11.30 a.m. 

 land sighted on port-bow, then high land on port-quarter, but very 

 indistinct — all in fog and clouds. Excitement ran high, and 

 everybody speculated where we were. It proved, as Arnesen 

 had guessed, to be Soro, with Sild Punkt and other headlands of 

 Alten just looming through the fog. Wind got round to the south 

 later in the day. In the evening, about 10.30, Aurora visible, but 

 not very bright, in the W. and thence to about W.N.W. 



October 4. Temperature, 1 p.m., press. 761*1, air 53*6, water 



