July, 1859. SIGNS OF RELEASE. 323 



CHAPTEE XVII. 



Signs of release — Dearth of animal life — Owl is good beef — 

 Beat out of winter quarters — Our game-list — Eeach Fury 

 Beach — Escape from Regent's Inlet — In Baffin's Bay — Captain 

 Allen Young's journey — Disco ; sad disappointment — Part 

 from our Esquimaux friends — Adieu to Greenland — Arrive 

 home. 



To-day {2nd July) I took a. long and delight- 

 ful walk, but sliot only two ducks ; Petersen 

 went in another direction, and got nothing ; 

 Christian, after toiling all day in his kayak, 

 returned with only two divers and a duck. 

 Lately he has obtained for us several king and 

 long-tailed ducks (no eider ducks have been 

 seen), two red-throated divers, and two brent 

 geese, and caught an ermine in its summer 

 coat. Yesterday one of the men brought on board 

 a trout weighing 2 lbs. ; he saw a glaucous gull 

 and a fox disputing for it ; the former seems to 

 have killed and brought it to land. 



The water now washes the south side of the 

 Fox Islands, and extends to the south point of 

 Long Island. The month of June has been 

 somewhat warmer than usual, its mean tempera- 

 ture being -|-35^°. 



Y 2 



