OF THE POLAR SEA, 119 



being comparatively little snow on the ice, 

 we advanced at a pace to which we had 

 lately been unaccustomed. In the afternoon 

 we crossed a recent track of a wolverene, 

 which, from a parallel mark in the snow, 

 appeared to have been dragging something. 

 Hepburn traced it, and upon the borders 

 of the lake found the spine of a deer, that 

 it had dropped. It was clean picked, and 

 at least one season old ; but we extracted 

 the spinal marrow from it, which, even in 

 its frozen state, was so acrid as to excoriate 

 the lips. We encamped within sight of the 

 Dog-rib Rock, and from the coldness of the 

 night and the want of fuel, rested very ill. 



On the 28th we rose at day-break, but 

 from the want of the small fire, that we 

 usually made in the mornings to warm our 

 fingers, a very long time was spent in 

 making up our bundles. This task fell to 

 Hepburn's share, as I suffered so much 

 from the cold as to be unable to take my 

 hands out of my mittens. We kept a 

 straight course for the Dog-rib Rock; but, 

 owing to the depth of the snow in the val- 



