Page:The Zoologist, 3rd series, vol 2 (1878).djvu/406

382 object they appeared to have a proper name, which they repeated to us several times with considerable animation.

On the evening of July 22nd we left Upernivik. Steering northwards along the Greenland coast, during a dense fog, we grounded for a short time on the Island of Kangitok ; this gave us an opportunity to land. Eider Duck's nests were very numerous on the island, but evidently they had been recently robbed, lor I did not find one containing eggs. Others of our party were more fortunate, and killed females of both species from off the nests ; but owing to their inability, at this period of the voyage, to recognise the difference between the females, the eggs were not satisfactorily identified, — rather to my regret, as well authenticated eggs of Somateria spectabilis are not common in collections.

In order to cross Melville Bay, the bugbear of Arctic voyagers in the days of sailing vessels, two courses are possible : one is to keep moving along the land-ice, and, in the event of the pack moving in shore and endangering the ship, cutting docks into the fixed ice, and thus obtaining shelter; the other, to strike boldly into the "Middle Ice," trusting to the winds and other favourable circumstances to open up navigable lanes of water. The latter plan was adopted by Captain Nares ; and, aided by very propitious circumstances, thirty-four hours after entering the pack we had left the "Middle Ice" behind us, and emerged into the " North Water" of Baffin Bay. Though eminently successful in this instance, considerable risk is involved by attempting a passage through the "Middle Ice;" and the fate of M'Clintock and his companions, in the 'Fox,' — who, entrapped in Melville Bay, drifted to the south- ward with the floating ice, — will be remembered by many of my readers. Their dreary and dangerous imprisonment lasted from August till the end of April in the following year, during which time they drifted south nearly twelve degrees of latitude. Our passage, on the contrary, was marked by brilliant weather; the immense fields of apparently smooth ice stretched away on every side, showing no sigu of motion ; the intense white was only relieved by the lanes of water, which here and there separated the floes: it was indeed a perfect picture of calm and repose, almost unbroken by the appearance of birds or other animals. By mid- day of July 25th we had fairly cleared the pack, and were steering for the high land in the vicinity of Cape York. Myriads of Little Auks swarmed around us, busily employed fishing for Entomostraca, flocks of them diving just in time to avoid the ship's