wind. Should these seas ever be navigated by ships, this would form a good half-way wintering station between Barrow's and Behring's Straits; and the mines might be wrought from May to August, before the ice would admit of prosecuting the voyage. The tides and currents in the inlet are exceedingly irregular, depending on the winds and ice; but on no occasion did I notice a change of more than one foot in the water level. Deer were numerous, including for the first time does with their fawns, now well grown. Sinclair shot two fat bucks; and, on his return, was followed by a barren-ground bear with her two cubs, attracted by the smell of the meat he was carrying. On his throwing down his burden, they scampered off, before he could get his gun ready. The young ptarmigan were strong on the wing; and herds of seals lay basking on the ice near this island. Stone traps, old paddles, and other vestiges indicated the occasional abode of Esquimaux, who use turf as well as wood for fuel. A small lake not far from our encampment was still frozen.
4th.—The ice continuing immoveable on the northern side of the island, and some open water having been seen from the hills in the channel separating it from the eastern mainland, we
