FIND BOAT’S GEAR—GUIDES ESCAPE. 395 
an oar, the loom of which had been made into a seal-club, and 
the blade into a paddle. The axe, and the boat’s tool-bag were 
also found, which convinced us that this was the resort of those 
who had stolen our boat; and that the women, six in number, 
were their wives. The men were probably absent, in our boat, 
on a sealing expedition; as a fine large canoe, made of fir- 
plank, perhaps from the wreck of the Saxe Cobourg, was 
lying on the beach without paddles or spears. She did not 
come there without paddles: and where were the spears of which 
every Fuegian family has plenty ? It was evident that the men 
of the party had taken them in our boat, and had cut up our 
oars like the one they had accidentally left. "The women under- 
stood what we wanted, and made eager signs to explain to us 
where our boat was gone. I did not like to injure them, and 
only took away our own gear, and the young man, who came 
very readily, to show us where our boat was, and, with the 
man who had brought us to the place, squatted down in the boat 
apparently much pleased with some clothes and red caps, which 
were given to them. We had always behaved kindly to the 
Fuegians wherever we met them, and did not yet know how to 
treat them as they deserved, although they had robbed us of 
so great a treasure, upon the recovery or loss of which much 
of the success of our voyage depended. Following the guidance 
of these two natives, we pulled against wind and rain until 
dark, when it became absolutely necessary to secure our boat 
for the night, deeply laden as she was with thirteen people. 
As we were then at a great distance from the place, whence 
we brought the natives, having pulled for four hours along- 
shore, and as they seemed to be quite at their ease, and con- 
tented, I would not secure our guides as prisoners, but allowed 
them to lie by the fire in charge of the man on watch. About 
an hour before daylight, although the look-out man was only 
a few yards distant from the fire, they slipped into the bushes, 
and as it was almost dark were immediately out of sight. Their 
escape was discovered directly, but to search for them during 
darkness, in a thick wood, would have been useless ; besides, 
our men were tired with their day’s work, and wanted rest, so 
