In the Arctic Regions. 429 
half hour. ‘ Ah,” said an old man, taking up his 
medals, “these must have been made by such people 
as you have been describing, for none that we have 
seen could do any thing like it ;” then taking hold of 
his coat, he asked, ‘‘ what kind of animal do these 
skins which you and the chiefs wear belong to ? 
We have none such in our country.” The anchor 
buttons also excited their admiration. At length we 
managed to gain their attention, and were informed 
that, as soon as the wind should blow strong from the 
land, the ice might be expected to remove from the 
shore, so as to open a passage for boats, and that it 
would remain in the offing until the reappearance of 
the stars. “Further to the westward,” they con- 
tinued, ‘the ice often adheres to the land throughout 
the summer ; and when it does break away, it is car- 
ried but a short distance to seaward, and is brought back 
whenever a strong wind blows on the coast. If there 
be any channels in those parts, they are unsafe for 
boats, as the ice is continually tossing about. We 
wonder, therefore,” they said, “that you are not pro- 
vided with sledges and dogs, as our men are, to travel 
along the land, when these interruptions occur.” 
They concluded‘ by warning us not to stay to the 
westward after the stars could be seen, because the 
winds would then blow strong from the sea, and pack 
the ice on the shore. On further inquiry we learned 
