SWIFT TIDES IN BEAR SOUND. 



335 



difficulty, in getting back, and thus ended his encounter with a 

 shoal of walrus. 



With reference to Frobisher Bay, I may here mention that, on 

 taking a look with my glass from " Flag-staff Hill," adjoining this 

 whaling depot, and sweeping around from the southeast extreme 

 of Meta Incognita toward the land I recently visited (the dreaded 

 land), I was astonished to see, just on the horizon, what appeared 

 to be islands stretching nearly across. One of the Innuits (Shar- 

 key) told me that he had been to those islands, and that his peo- 

 ple sometimes make a passage across the entrance of the bay by 

 starting on the Kingaite side, and then striking from one island to 

 the other, by way of Too-jar-choo-ar (Resolution Island), until able 

 to make the distance (avoiding the dreaded district) to the place 

 where we then were — Cape True. ' Years ago reindeer were very 

 numerous on those islands, but at last the moss failed and they all 

 died. Their horns and bones are to be found scattered all over 

 the place. Polar bears are plenty there. 



I was sorry to find several <3f my Innuit friends at this place 

 very sick from the complaint that was introduced to their race 

 when first brought into, contact with civilization, viz., consump- 

 tion. Sharkey's wife was rapidly declining. Her bleeding at the 

 lungs had left her white as the driven snow, and poor as fleshless 

 bones could be. 



I will here relate an anecdote, which will serve to show how 

 fond some of the Innuits are of sweets, as well as of fat or blubber. 



Mr. Rogers was carrying along over the rocks a jug of "las-as- 

 ses," as the Innuits pronounce molasses. All at once the bottom 

 of the jug dropped out, and the contents splashed down, his hand 

 flying up as if an electric shock from a strongly-charged battery 

 had been given him. Quick as it' was noised about, the spot 

 sweetened over with the " lasasses" was not unlike a sugar hogs- 

 head near a bee-hive on a warm sunny day. The Innuits, men, 

 women, and children, crowded round it to lick up the sweet mix- 

 ture ! 



After arranging all matters that Captain B had asked my 



attention to, and enjoying a good rest in one of the officers' tents, 

 we started on our way back to the ship, taking with us several 

 saddles of venison, half a dozen brace of ducks, and other good 

 things for those on board. 



When about half way through Bear Sound, the commotion and 

 roar of the waters were such as no person who has not witnessed 



