of any boat that may chance to be near. The largest of these glaciers occupies the head of the bay, and, according to Captain Beechey's account, extends from two to three miles inland. Numerous large rents in its upper surface have caused it to bear a resemblance to the ruts left by a wagon; hence it was named by the voyagers the "Wagon Way." The frontage of this glacier presents a perpendicular surface of 300 feet in height, by 7000 feet in length. Mountain masses— "Whose blocks of sapphire seem to mortal eye At the head of the bay there is a high pyramidal mountain of granite, termed Rotge Hill, from the myriads of small birds of that name which frequent its base, and appear to prefer its environs to every other part of the harbor. They are so numerous that we have frequently seen an uninterrupted line of them extending full half way over the bay, or to a distance of more than three miles, and so close together that thirty have fallen at one shot. This living column, on an average, might have been about six yards broad, and as many deep; so that, allowing sixteen birds to a cubic yard, there must have been nearly four millions of birds on the wing at one time. The number I have given certainly seems large; yet when it is told that the little rotges rise in such numbers as completely to darken the air, and that their chorus is distinctly audible at a distance of four miles, the estimate will not be thought to bear any reduction." One of their earliest excursions in this bay was an attempt to ascend the peak of Rotge Hill," upon which," says Captain Beechey, "may now, perhaps, be seen at the height of about 2000 feet, a staff that once carried a red flag, which was planted there to mark the greatest height we were able to attain, partly in consequence of the steepness of the ascent, but mainly on account of the detached masses of rock which a very slight matter would displace and hurl down the precipitous declivity, to the utter destruction of him who depended upon their support, or who might happen to be in their path below. The latter part of our ascent was, indeed, much against our inclination; but we found it impossible to descend by the way we had come up, and were compelled to gain a ledge, which promised the only secure resting-place we could find at that height. This we were able to effect by sticking the tomahawks with which we were provided, into crevices in the rock, as a support for our feet; and some of these instruments we were obliged to leave where they were driven, in consequence of the danger that attended their recovery." During the vessel's detention in this harbor, the bay and anchorage were completely surveyed. When the first party rowed into this bay, it was in quiet possession of herds of walruses, who were so unaccustomed to the sight of a boat that they assembled about her, apparently highly incensed at the intrusion, and swam toward her as though they would have torn the planks asunder with their tusks. Their hides were so tough that nothing but a bayonet would pierce them. The wounds that were inflicted only served to increase their rage, and it was with much difficulty they were kept off with fire-arms. Subsequently the boats went better prepared and more strongly supported, and many of these monsters were killed; some were fourteen feet in length, and nine feet girth, and of such prodigious weight, that the boat's crew could scarcely turn them. The ships had not been many days at their anchorage when they were truly astonished at the sight of a strange boat pulling toward the ships, which was found to belong to some Russian adventurers, who were engaged in the collection of peltry and morse' teeth. This is the last remaining establishment at Spitzbergen still upheld by the merchants of Archangel. Although equally surprised at the sight of the vessels, the boat's crew took courage, and after a careful scrutiny, went on board the Dorothea; Captain Buchan gave them a kind reception, and supplied them with whatever they wanted; in return for which they sent on board, the following day, a side of venison in excellent condition. Wishing to gain some further information of these people, an officer accompanied them to their dwelling at the head of a small cove, about four miles distant from the bay, where he found a comfortable wooden hut, well lined with moss, and stored with venison, wild ducks, &c. It is related by Captain Beechey that it was with extreme pleasure they noticed in this retired spot, probably the most northern and most desolate habitation of our globe, a spirit of gratitude and devotion to the Almighty rarely exercised in civilized countries. "On landing from the boat and approaching their residence, these people knelt upon its threshold, and offered up a prayer with fervor and evident sincerity. The exact nature of the prayer we did not learn, but it was no doubt one of thanksgiving, and we concluded it was a custom which these recluses were in the habit of observing on their safe return to their habitation. It may, at all events, be regarded as an instance of the beneficial effects which seclusion from the busy world, and a contemplation of the works of nature, almost invariably produce upon the hearts of even the most uneducated part of mankind." On the 7th of June the expedition left the anchorage to renew the examination of the ice, and after steering a few leagues to the northward, found it precisely in the same state as it had been left on the 2d. In spite of all their endeavors, by towing and otherwise, the vessels were driven in a calm by the heavy swell into the packed ice, and the increasing peril of their situation may be imagined from the following graphic description: "The pieces at the edge of the pack were at one time wholly immersed in the sea, and at the next raised far above their natural line of flotation, while those further ..., being more extensive, were alternately depressed or elevated at either extremity as the advancing wave forced its way along. "The see-saw motion which was thus produced was alarming, not merely in appearance, but in fact, and must have proved fatal to any vessel that had encountered it; as floes of ice, several yards in thickness, were continually crashing and breaking in pieces, and the sea for miles was covered with fragments ground so small that they actually formed a thick, pasty substance-in nautical language termed, brash ice'which extended to the depth of five feet. Amidst this giddy element, our whole attention was occupied in endeavoring to place the bow of the vessel, the strongest part of her frame, in the direction of the most formidable pieces of ice-a maneuver which, though likely to be attended with the loss of the bowsprit, was yet preferable to encountering the still greater risk of having the broadside of the vessel in contact with it; for this would have subjected her to the chance of dipping her gunwale under the floes as she rolled, an accident which, had it occurred, would either have laid open her side, or have overset the vessel at once. In either case, the event would probably have proved fatal to all on board, as it would have been next to impossible to rescue any person from the confused moving mass of brash ice which covered the sea in every direction." The attention of the seamen was in some degree diverted from the contemplation of this scene of diffìculty by the necessity of employing all hands at the pump, the leak having gained upon them. But, fortunately, toward morning, they got quite clear of the ice. Steering to the westward to reconnoiter, they fell in, in longitude 4° 30' E., with several whale ships, and were informed by them that the ice was quite compact to the westward, and that fifteen vessels were beset in it. Proceeding to the northward, the ships passed, on the 11th of June, Cloven Cliff, a remarkable isolated rock, which marks the northwestern boundary of Spitzbergen, and steered along an intricate channel between the land and ice; but, next morning, their further advance was stopped, and the channel by which the vessels had entered became so completely closed up as to preclude the possibility also of retreating. Lieutenant Beechey proceeds to state "The ice soon began to press heavily upon us, and, to add to our difficulties, we found the water so shallow that the rocks were plainly discovered under the bottoms of the ships. It was impossible, however, by any exertion on our part, to improve the situations of the vessels. They were as firmly fixed in the ice as if they had formed part of the pack, and we could only hope that the current would not drift them into still shallower water, and damage them against the ground." The ships were here hemmed in in almost the same position where Baffin, Hudson, Poole, Captain Phipps, and all the early voyagers to this quarter had been stopped. As the tide turned, the pieces of ice immediately around the ships began to separate, and some of them to twist round with a loud grinding noise, urging the vessels, which were less than a mile from the land, still nearer and nearer to the beach. By great exertions the ships were hauled into small bays in the floe, and secured there by ropes fixed to the ice by means of large iron hooks, called ice anchors. Shifting the ships from one part of this floe to the other, they remained attached to the ice thirteen days. As this change of position could only be effected by main force, the crew were so constantly engaged in this harassing duty, that their time was divided almost entirely between the windlass and the pump, until the men at length became so fatigued that the sick-list was seriously augmented. During this period, however, the situation of the leak was fortunately discovered, and the damage repaired. An officer and a party of men who left the Dorothea to pay a visit to the shore, about three or four miles distant, lost themselves in the fog and snow, and wandered about for sixteen hours, until, quite overcome |