Alaska. — Muir. 299 
That morning we had to break a way for the canoe through a 
sheet of ice half a mile wide, which had formed during the night. 
The weather holding clear, we obtained telling views of the vast 
expanse of the Muir glacier and made many sketches. Then fear- 
ing that we might be frozen in for the winter we hurried away 
back through Icy strait into Lynn canal. We then visited David- 
son glacier and the Indian village at the mouth of the Chilcat 
river, where we obtained views of three other low desciending gla- 
ciers of the same rank as the Davidson. Thence, turning south, 
homeward bound, we parsed the Auk and Eagle glaciers, and bat- 
tled awhile with the bergs of Sum Dum, narrowly escaping being 
frozen among them. North of cape Fanshaw we were stormbound 
nearly a week ere we could visit the great glacier near the mouth 
of the Stikeen. November 20th we reached Wrangel, and our 
ice lessons for the season were done. 
Next year in August I again set out from Wrangel in a canoe 
and made more careful examination of the glaciers in Glacier ba}', 
and of many new ones that I discovered during the season, the 
most noteworth}' being those of Sum Dum and the immense glacier 
at the head of Taylor ba}' to the west of Griacier bay, in crossing 
which I encountered some exciting adventures. 
Again last summer I spent two months in Griacier bay, mostly- 
on the Muir glacier getting acquainted with its higher fountains, 
studjing the fossil forests about it and the rich and lovely flora 
of the lower ridges, etc. Fain would I describe the glories of 
those months in the ice-world — the beautiful and terrible network 
of crevasses, the clustering pinnacles, the thousand streams ring- 
ing and gurgling in azure channels cut in the living body of the 
glacier, the glorious radiance of the sunbeams falling on cr3'stal 
dale and hill, the rosy glow of the dawn and sunset, the march of 
the clouds on the mountains, and the mysterious splendor of 
the auroras when the nights grow long, etc. , etc. , etc. But this 
would require a volume, while here I have only the space to add — 
Go to Alaska, go and see. 
