SHIPWRECKED ON YETORUP 99 
been partly trampled down ; in soft snow they are 
useless. 
We found the schooner at Onebetsu as we left her. 
The next day it blew a gale, with heavy snow from 
the north-west, so we had to remain in the Ainu house 
all day, and suffered frightfully from the wood smoke 
getting into our eyes, making them smart and run 
with water. On the 7th we got things ready for the 
men to pack across. We started at 10.30 a.m., but 
the road was very bad, causing us to sink up to our 
knees in many places, notwithstanding our snow-shoes. 
Mr. Kono, two men, and I, arrived at 5.45 p.m., 
having been seven and a quarter hours doing the 
twelve and a half miles. Half an hour later five of my 
men turned up ; two others did not come in at all that 
night, but, as they were carrying blankets, we did 
not think any harm would come to them. Next 
morning the men I sent out to seek for the missing 
sailors found them under a snow-drift. They had 
lost the path in the darkness, and thought it better 
to turn in under the snow and await daylight. They 
appeared none the worse, but it was fortunate they 
happened to be the men carrying the blankets. 
We had to send to Onebetsu on other occasions 
also for rice and various things, and the journeys 
were never agreeable. On the return from a trip 
we made on January 18 we had a very unpleasant 
experience. Our party consisted of the Governor, 
the mate, the darkey steward, six sailors, and myself. 
We arrived at Onebetsu about 2.30 p.m., and put 
up the rice and other things into convenient-sized 
packages ready for the morrow. The next morning 
we sent the men off with the packages, and the rest 
of us then went down to the schooner, only to find 
