454 PROFESSOR HEER ON THE EOSSIL ELORA OE NORTH GREENLAND. 
Atanekerdluk, while I went with the other boat as far north on the Disco shore as the 
natives would go. A little further along the coast I found some doubtful impressions 
of leaves in a great wilderness of stones brought down by a glacier-torrent, and about 
three miles still further north came to the magnificent gorge in the sandstone cliffs by 
the shore to which I have vainly endeavoured to do justice in a view exhibited at the 
Meeting*. One mile after this the cliffs by the shore came to an end, and the coast appa- 
rently continued quite flat until opposite Hare Islanclf . The natives agreed that no coal 
was visible along the whole of this shore ; and we crossed to Mannik, on the opposite side 
of the Waigat. Here there was a small thin seam of coal exposed in a cliff not far from 
the shore ; but I obtained nothing from it, and we continued our course to Atanekerdluk, 
arriving shortly after midnight; here we passed the night of the 27th August. The 
next day was occupied in loading the boat with the specimens we had left there, in 
sketching, and in completing the examination of the locality. At 4 p.m. we started for 
Sakkak, and left it at 8.30,’ arriving at Eitenbenk on the morning of the 29th August. 
Mr. Brown had arrived about twelve hours before, but, like ourselves, had failed to make 
any fresh discoveries. 
“ At Eitenbenk we remained three days, with foul weather. During this time the 
collections, including many hundred specimens, amounting to considerably more than 
half a ton in weight, were repacked. We were then favoured, by the kindness of 
Mr. Anderson, with a passage in a blubber-boat to Godhavn, at which place we arrived 
on September the 4th, after a most disagreeable voyage. On the 10th we sailed on 
board the brig ‘ Hoalfisken,’ and arrived at Copenhagen on October the 22nd.” 
Mr. Whymper concludes his Deport by saying, “It is right to observe that these 
collections could not have been made excepting by means of the facilities afforded 
by the Danish authorities. We may feel a natural satisfaction that so many as 80 
species should have been discovered by the labours of Professor Heer, but it should be 
remembered that they are primarily due to the invaluable information given by 
t 
* “ At this part some boulders of granite, probably transported by sea-ice, were lying on the shore. 
t It is to be regretted that Hr. Whymper could not extend bis excursion as far as Hare Island, where 
General Sabine collected brown coal and amber fifty years ago, and where it is probable that fossil plants 
occur. General Sabine has had the kindness to send me an extract from bis Journal, containing information 
respecting this discovery, and I cannot but let it find a place here. 
“ 1818, June 19th. — Sergeant Martin and my servant [John Smith] have been on a shooting excursion for 
twenty-four hours, but have seen no other land birds than Ptarmigan and Snow Buntings. They have brought 
with them from a hill near the middle of the island, several pieces of a curious specimen, apparently the trunk 
of a fir tree, fossilized. Our party walked this evening in search of the bed of Hare Island Coal, but the direc- 
tion we had received from the surgeon of a whaler did not enable us to find it ; we procured, however, speci- 
mens of the most interesting mineralogy of the island, particularly a remarkable variety of brown coal passing 
into bituminous wood, which is mentioned by Giesecke. 
“ I may add that we collected from the vicinity of the spot near the sea where onr clocks and transit were 
placed, many specimens of a shaly coal, many of which had on their surface a deposit of amber; these were 
given to Mr. Konig at the British Museum, and were described by him in the mineralogy of the voyage. The 
hill was under 1000 feet in height.” 
