VARDO TO KOLGUEV 2e 
land—in a word, the idea of the unknown, this it was 
which really attracted me, as it has attracted many before. 
I do not know that it had a charm as strong for all 
on board. I think the whalers, when they discussed 
things in their bunks, very likely condemned it as a 
poor move which might probably lead to disaster, but 
could not bring in a barrelful of fat. I think the skipper 
and the mate both considered it a queer sort of game 
for a pleasure trip, and very different from the gentle- 
men’s yachting of which they had always heard. 
However, I did my best to show them all what we 
might expect, reading aloud in the cabin after meals 
extracts from the only two accounts I had been able 
to find by men who actually had been on Kolguev. I 
do not know that either of these were very exhilarating. 
But just see how different they were in those particulars 
which we wanted most. 
For Maximow’s priest says this :—‘ The rivers Krivaya 
and Gusina are already known to the inhabitants of 
Mezen as a good resting-place for vessels; and the bay, 
which cuts deeply into the island, is a safe harbour for 
the biggest vessels coming from the White Sea: for 
boats and schooners.’ 
But this is Saweljew :— 
‘In its whole circuit Kolguev does not afford a single 
safe anchorage or road, and its coasts are extremely 
dangerous on account of the slight depth of the sea 
and the sandbanks or koski.’ 
