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M« -11,11 I .^(/I'Mil'. l.iiMlMX THE POLAR WORLD: A POPULAR DESCRIPTION OF MAN AND NATURE IM TUK AHCTIC AND ANTARCTIC REGIONS UK TIIK (JLOBF BY DR. O. HAllTWIG, AL'TUOII f their gloomy solitudes, or as tlu," bold investigator of their mysteries. The Table of Contents shows the great variety of interesting subjects embraced witliin a comparatively narrow compass ; and as my constant aim has bem to convey solid instruction under an entertaining f,„-m. I venture to hope that the public will grant a favourable ivciption to this new edition of 'The Polar World,' in which I have traced the path of discovery to its most recent dates. G. IIAKTWIG. J^Ai.d.v Air.i.A. l.iDwiGsmiiu JuHuitnj ;}, 187!. I 'Ml. M '# CONTHNTS. I'AUT I. Till'! ARCTIC UK(JIOXS, r4 P- ■4, (■IIAITKK I. I hi; Aitrin- i,.\si's. Till' l?,iti'i'ii (ifiiiiiilH I'f Tiiiiiiri -Aliiiiuliiiicc of Animal l-il'i' uii tlic 'I'liinlri in Stiniiiiir 'I'lhir Silincc iiuil lli solaf iini in Wiiitti' rrutfi'linn .iHnnlnl Id ViHi'liitiiPii liy ilii' Siiiiw l'"linviT-^'Pi)Wlli in tlic liinliot L.ilitirli .s ('IiniMi'ti r lit' TuniliM Vi t:it.iliiiii Soutliern liiiiiiitliirv-'.iuf of tlic IJarrcii (.'nuintls 'I'luir liximt 'i'lic l''iirisl /one -Ari'lif Triis Sldwnrss of llicir (Irowlii MmpiiMtiy niihr NorliaTn Fornsts— Mosi|iiitocs — Tlic v.ii'ions I'mumin wliicli lift.'i linr iIm' Si'vi'i'iiy of iin Ari'tic Ciiinuti^ InMnlar ami ('oniinentiii I'oNition Cunriiis Wimls -Kxtrrnii's of (Jild ohsiTvod liy Sir Iv ImIi'Iut anil llr. Kam lliw i« M.in al'Ic to >up|"irt tlii- Ui^Joiii's) of an Ari't.i' Wialci'? I'l Is of a iiiiMi r ('liin;il(i having oinc iTi;,'niil in llic An'tio iic^ioiis lis imiim- a n-ilint; to |)r. (»>«alil lIciT- I'ccuiiar liiMUlit's of tlu' Aivlii' Ki'jiioiis — Sun.-il I.^n^' laiiiar NiL'lits — 'i'liti Aui'ora I'aui' :' rllAl'IKli II. Aia'iH i.AMi c.iiAhia li.hs AMI lill;h,s. 'till' Ixfiiiilicr— Strui'Unv "t ii> i''(iot Clatlcring Noisi^ wlim Walking .Vnlli i> I'Ati-aoiilinary Ulfmrlory I'uvk is — Tlii' Icclanilic Moss I'l'.srnt ainl !"1imii' Hall!.'!' of tlio Hi'indt'iT Its iiivalnaLlu (iualitius as an Antic (lnim >i ic Aniinil — ikcviill.s a^'ainst Opiii'vssion - iMuiuits of lln- I^cinditr 'I'lm Wolf 'I'lic tUutlon or Wulvfriiif -tiadtlits— Tlio V.\k or Moose INit— 'I'iif Musk-ox - 'I'lu' Wild Slucp of llic iJoi'ky Mcnintaiiis 'I'liu Silurian Ai'^uli -The Aivtir I'l x Its ItuiTows — Tilt' I,fniiiiiii;:s 'I'luii- Migratinns and Knttnit-.s — Anti- Anatidii' — 'rill' Smow-I. until.',' Tlii' Lapland liiiuliug — Thu Sca-i'a>;lt' — I'l'ottucd liv a l)oipliiii ....... t . .17 Vlll CONTKNTS. CHAPTER III, THR ARCTIC SEAS. Dangprs peculiar to tlio Arctic Soa — lecficlds — Hummocks — Collision of Ice- Holds — Icelicrgs— Their Origin — Thiir Size— The Glaoier8 which pivo them Hirth^Tlii ir JJeauty — Sonielimcs um tul Auxiliaries to tlio Mariiu'r--I).iii^'i'rs of AiH'horiiif; to a Borg— A crumbling IjiT"! — Thn Ico-blink — Togs — TrauKparency of the Atniosjilicro — Phenomena of IJctlci'lion and Kefraction Causes wliii'li prevent tiie Accumulation of Polar Ice— Tides— Currents — Ico a bad Conductor of Hoat — ^'"so I'rovisious of Nature Page ^ 'J CHAPTER IV. ARCTIC MARINE ANIMAI S. Populousnoss of the Arctic Seas— The Greenland Whale — The Fin Whales — The NarwJial— The Beluga, or White Dolphin— The Black Dolphin— His wliole- t>aIo JNIassacre oh the Faeroe Islands — The Ore or Ciramptis — The Seals — Tho Walrus — Its acute Smell^IIistory of a young Walrus — Parental Aflfection — Tho Polar Boar— His Sagacity — Hibernation of tho Sho-Bear— Scsi Birds . 40 ji i I SkJ Th CHAPTER V. ICELAND. Volcanic Origin of the Island — The Klofa JukuU — Lava Streams — The Burning Wouiitains of Krisuvik — The Mud-caldrons of Reykjahlid— The Tungo-hver at Reykholt— Tho Great Gcysir— Tho Strokkr— Crystal Pools— Tho Almannagia — The Surts-hellir— Beautiful Ice-cave- Tho Ootha Foss— Tho Detti Foss— Cli- mate— Vegetation -Cattle — Barbarous ^lodo of Sheap-sh earing — Reindeer — ■ Polar Bears— Birds— Tho Eider-duck — Videy — Vigr — The Wild Swan— Tlio Raven — Tho Jerfaleon— The Giant Auk or Geirfugl— I'ish — Fishing Season — The White Shark— Mineral Kingdom — Sulphur — Peat — Drift Wood . 60 CHAPTER VI. HISTORY OF ICELAND. Discovery of the Island by Naddodr in 861 — Gardar— ^I'loki of tho Rjxvens— Ingolfr and lioif — Ultliot tho Lan-giver — The Althing — Thingvalla — Introduction of Christianity into tho Island — Frederick the Saxon and Thorwald tlio Travelbr — Thangbrand — Golden Age of Icelandic Literature — Snorri Sturleson — TIio Island submits to Hakon, King of Norway, in 1251 — Long Series of Calamities — Great Eruption of tiio Skapta .T('ikull in 1783 — Commercial Mcnopoly - Belter Times in Prospect .......... 7'> I CONTENTS. IX CHAPTER VU. THE ICSLAXDKUS. t Skalholt — Rtykjiivik — Tlio Fair — The Peasant iind the Merchant — A Clufgvnian in ills Cups — llay-inaking — The Icclaiulor's Hut- t'liurolR'S— Poverty of tin" Cleipv — Jon Tliorlakst'n— The Seminary of Jteykjavik — IJenellcial Iiiflnmce cf the Clerj.'y— Homo Educaliuu — The Icelander's Winter's Evonini; — Taste (Mr J,iterature— Tho Language — Tlio Public Library at Reykjavik — The leelanilic Literary Society — Ie< 1 uidic Newspapers — Longevity — Leprosy — Travelling in Iceland- Fording tlio Rivers — Crossing of tho Skeidara by Mr. lIo'land--A Nijxiit's IJivouac Pa::f Mo CIL\PTER VIII. iUi: WKSTMAN ISLANDS. The 'Wostmans — Their extreme DitRculty of Access— How they became peopled — Ibiniacy — ^ Kaufslathir and Ol'auleyto — Sheep Hoisting — Ege: (latliering — J»i-(adlul 3b>rtality among the Children — The Uiukloll — Gentleman Joh.n — The Algerian Pirates — Dreadlul Sufferings of the Islanders . . . 10:{ CHAPTER IX. FUOM DROXTUi:i.M TO THE NOKTII CAPE. .Mild Climate of tlio Norwegian Coast — Its Causes— Tho Norwegian Pea.sant — Nnrwejiiati Constitution — Romantic Coast Scenery — Drontheini (Ireiffenfeld - llolnii' ,i\:'\ Viiro — Tho Sea-Eagle — Tho Herring Fisheries — Tho Lofoten Islands— The Cod Fisheries — Wretched Condition of the Fisher 'len-Tromso- — .Mtenfionl — The '.'iiiiper Mines— Ilammcrfest, the most Northern Town in tho World —The North Capo lOJ CILVPTER X. SriTZBEKGEN' — BEAU ISLAND — ,IA5I MEYEN. Tlio West Coast of Spitzbergen — Ascension of a Mountain by Dr. Scoresby — His Ivxeiirsinn along tho Coast — A Stranded Whale— Magdalena Hay— Multitudes of Se,i-liird.s — Animal Life — ilidnight Silence — (iliciers — A Dangerous Neighbour- hood— Tho Swedish Scientific E.xpeditions — The Interior of Spitzbergen— diilies Land — Climate of .'^i);t/l'eru'en — Flora of Spitzbergen —Its Similarity wi:h that of the Alps abo\e the Snow-linc— Reindeer — The Ilyperboreau Ptiirmigan- FisI:eH — Coal — I>riftwoi d — Discovers of Spitzbergen by Rarentz, Heemskerk, and Ryp— Brilliant period of the Whale-fishery — Coffins— Eight Eiiglisli Sailors Winter in Spitzliergen, 1630 — Melancholy Death of some Dutch Volun- tei rs— Russian Hunters— Their Mode of Wintn'ing in Spiizbergrn— Srh.irosiin - Walrus Ships from Hammerfest and Tromsii — Rear ir Clurio Island— Ren- lut- Mnorni' us Slaughter of Walruses — !\Iililness i^f its Climate -- Mount Misery — Adventurous IJo.it Vjyage of some Norwegian Sailors — Jan Meyeii — lieereulierg 122 COXTKNTS. (•IIAPTKIi XI. NOVAYA Z1:;MI.YA. Tho Sea of Kara— Loschkin — RDsmysslow — Liitko— Krotnw — i'iichtiissuv —Sails along tho Hastcrii Coast of lliu HoutlK-rii Isliiiid to JIalosclikiii .Scliar— His Second Voya^o and Death — Meteorological Ubservatioiis of Ziwolka- The Cold .SuniiiicT of Novaya Zeinlya — Von IJacr's •Scienlille Voyage to Novaya /(•lulya— His A(l>-entures in Matosclikin Scliar — Storm in Kostin Sehar— Sea lialli and Votive Cross — liotanieal Oli.servations — A Natural (Jarden — Solitude and Silence — A Bird-Bazaar — Hunting Expeilitions of the Kut^sians to Novaya /endya Page 140 CHAPTER XII. TUE LAPrS. Their Ancient History and Conversion to Christianity — Sell'-denial and Poverty of the Lajjland Clergy — Their Singular INIode of Preaching — Gross Superstition of the Lapps — Tiio Evil Spirit of tho Woods — Thfi I^ipland \Vilches — Piiysical Constitati(jn of the Lapps — Their Dress — The rjiilllappars — Their Dwellings — Store Houses — Reindeer Pens — Milking the Reindeer — ^ligrations — The Lai)- land Dog — Skiders, or Skates — The Sliiiae, or Pnlka — Natural Iteautics of Lap- land— Altachinontof the Lapps to their Country — Bear Hunting Wolf Hunting -■Mode of liiving of tho Wealthy Lajiiis- How they Kill the Keindeer Visit- ing the l",iir Manunon Worsiiip — Treasure Hiding — ''i'abak, or Bniende ' — Atf'cctionate Disposition of the Lapps — The Skogslapp — The Fisiierlapp . 146 i CHAPTER XIII. MATTHIAS ALI:XANDI;R CASTHfiS'. His I'irthplaeo and first Studies— Journoy in Lapland, 1838 — Tho Iwalojoki— Tho Lake of laiara-T'lie Pastor of Utzjoki — Pruin Uowanieini to Kind Se- cond Voyage, 1S41-44— Storm on tho White Sea — Return to Archan;:el Tlie Tunili-as of tho European Samojedes — Mosen — Universal Druidveuiuiss Sledgo Journey to Pustosersk — A Samojedo Teacher — Tundra Storms— Ahandoiied and alono in tho Wilderness — Pustosersk- Our Traviiier's Persecutions at I'slsylnisk and Ishemsk — Tho I'usa — Crossing tho Ural— Obdorsk— Second Siberian Journey, 18 15-48— Overilowing of tho Obi -Surgut — Kr.isnojarsk — Agreeable Surprisi — Turuchaiisk — Voyage down the Jenissei — Ci>-irt'n's Study at I'lachina — Prom Dudiiika to Tolstoi Niiss-- I'rozen Feet Relnrn Voyayi' to the South Frozen fast on the .lenissei — Wonderful I'reservation Journey across tho Chinese Frontiers, and to Transbaikalia— Return to Fini.ind — I'rol'essorship at Ilelsingfors — Death of Castren. 1800 .... 171 CIIAI'TKK XIV. Tilt: sA M(M \: iii:s. 1 i 'i'lieir li.irbarisMi .Nuni, or Jilibeambaei'l je .""-hamanisni -S.iiudJciU' blol> ,'^ja- dai U.ili- i'Le Tadebtsios, or Spirits The Tadibes, or Si.reerers Their COXTKNTS. XI Sdv — Siiils >L'!i;ir- Jli.s ilkii-Tlic III Noviiya scliiir — Sia — Solitudo to Novava Dross— Thi'ir Invocations— Their conjiiriiif,' 'rrn'k> Hcvtroiii-r y.M \><\\\v I'-ad —A Siiincijetle Oath— Appearance of tho .SiuncjeJes-Thrii- 1»it>s -A Sainojuli' Belle— ChMracttr uf the Samoj;.los— Their decreasing Nuiubers— Trailiiiniis ..f iincieutHeroes i'age 1S7 CIIAPTKR XV, TlIK OSTJAKS. What is tho Obi ?— Inundations— An Ostjak Suninior Jurt— Poverty of the (\-tj;ik Fishermen— A Winter Jurt— Attachment of the Ostjaks to their an.init Cns- toms— An O.-tjak Prince— Archery —Appearance and Ciiaracter of the ()>iiak> — The Fair of Obdorsk !'■'<> CIIAPTKR XVI. CONQUEST OF SIBKRIA liV THE RUSSIANS— TUEIU VOYAGES OF PlSCdVEKY ALONG TUE SHOUES OF THE I'dl.AR SEA. Ivan tho Terrible- Stro;^onoff-Yerniak the Kobbrr and ("ompieror— His KxjM'di- tions to Siberia— Battle of Tobolsk— Yerniak's iKath— l'ru{,''"''^s "* ''"^ •''"*■ sians to Ochotsk— Semon Deshnew— Condition of the .Siberian Natives iindi-r the Eussi;ni Yoke— VoyaL'cs of Discovery in tho Kciizn of tho Kniprcss Anna - Prontsehischtschew— Ciiariton and Deinetrins Laptew — An Arctic llerniiio — Schalanrow— Discoveriis in the Sea of JUhrin,:,: and in the I'acitii' < >.i;in 'I'ho Liiehow Islands -Fossil Ivory— New Siberia— The Wooden Mounuins Tim jiast A^'cs of Siljcria .......... -^''> CIIAPTKR XVII. SIBERIA — FUR TRAbE AND (JuLD-DIGUINtlS. Siberia— Its ininienso Extent and Capabilities— Tho Exiles— Meiitschikoff— I)oli;orcjuky— Miiuich— Tho Criminals -The free Siberian I'easant— Extremes of Heat and Cold— Fur-bearing Animals- The Sable— The i;rniino— The Siberian Weazel— Tho Sc.i Otter— The Black Fox— The I-ynx - The Squirrel— The A'ary- ing Hare— The Suslik- Iniport;ineo of the Fur Trade for the Northern Pr.ivine.s of the Knssian Empire— Tho Cold DiL^-ini-'S of Eastern Siberia— The T.ii^M —Expenses and Dilficulties of S.areliing Expeditions -Ci>st of Produce and enormous Profits of successful Speculafors- Their senseless Extravagance - First Discovery of Gold . tho Ural Mountuns— Jakowlew and Demidow - Nibhne-Tatrilsk -'■'^ CUAPTEH XVm. middenuokff's advi:ntuki:s ix iaimuri.and. For what Pnriuiso was IMiddendorff's Voyage to Taimurland undertaken?- I»itli- culties and (.)bst;icles — Expedition down the Taii.iur Jliver to the Polar Sra - Storm on Tainuir Lake— Loss of the J>oat— Middendorff ill and alone in ';y' N. Lat. — Saved by .a grateful Samdjedo— Clim.ile and Vegetation of Taimur- liiud Hi, 1 Xll CONTEXTS. CHAPTER XIX. THK JAKL'l'S. Their Ijicrgetic Nntioiiality--TIic'ii- Jhscint— Tlair Ulooiiiy Cliaraetcr— Summer ami Winter Dweliinnrs— The Jakut Horse — InerediMo Powers of Kiuluraiieo of tho Jakuts— Tlicir Siiarimess of \'i»ioii--Siiriirisini^ local AleiiKiry- 'I'lioir manual Dexterity -Leather, Poniards, Carpets -Jakut Uliittoris - .Siiperslitioiis Fear of the 3Iountaiii Sjiirit Ljesehei — Offeritif,'s of Horse-hair— Inii>rovisetl Soii^'s— The Kiver Jakiit I'age 2o2 I 1{1 orl CHAPTEIi XX. WUANGEL. His distinguislieJ Servii\s as an Arctic Kxplorer — From PetersliU'-g to Jakutsk in 1820 -Trade of Jakutsk — From Jakutsk to Nishno Kolymsk — The I'ada- rany Dreadful Climate of Nishno Kolymsk — Summer Plagues— Vegetation — Animal Lite— Keindei '• Hunting— Famine — Inundations — The Silurian Dog — ■ First Journeys over tlie Ico of tho Pul.ir Sea, and Exi)liirati(m of the Coast lieyond Capo Shelagskoi in 1821 — Dreadful Dangers and Hardshii s-^Iatiuscli- kiii's Sledge Journey over the Polar Sea in 1822 — Last Adventures on the I'olar Sea —A lUm for Life — Return to St . Petersburg 250 1 i CHAPTER XXI. THE TL'NGl'SI. Their Relationshiji to the ^landschu — I>readt'ul Condition of the Outcast Nomads - Character of tho Tungusi —Their Outfit for the Chase— Hear Hunting - Dwellings— Diet— A Night's Halt M'ilh Tungusi in tho Forest -Oehotsk . 275 f CHAPTER XXII. GEOUili; WILLIAM STELLKK. His IJirth -Enters the Russian Service— Scientific Journey to Kamtsehaika — Ac- eompanies IJehring on his Second Voyage of Discovery — Lands on the Island of Kaiak -Shameful Conduct of Hi'hring — Shipwreck on Hehring Island — Hehring's Death-Return to Kamtsehatka — Loss of Property — Persecutions of the Silierian Authorities — Frozen to Death at Tjumen .... 281 CHAPTER XXIII. KAMTSCHAIKA. Climate Feftility -Luxuriant Vegetation — Fish —Sea Pirds — Kamtsehatkan l!ird- catchers The Hay of Awatscha. — Petropaulowsk-Thc Kinvitschalkans — Their physical ami moral (iualitics— The Fritillaria sarrana — The Muehanior--Bears -bogs 2i)0 I * CONTEXTS. xin N'oniads mitiiifi - '275 kii-.Ao- I^laiRl [.slaiid— itiuiis of 281 in Ijinl- ^Their -lic.irs 2;to CIIAPTKR XXIV. THE TCHUKTCIII. TIki l^jiiul of tho Tcliuklohi — Tluiirliulfpoiulciit Spirit and Comniorfial ICiitcrpribu I'crpotual Migrations— Tlio Fair of Ostrownojo — Viwit in ii Tcliuktoh Toiof; - IJacos— Tdiukti'li Hajiulorea— Tho Tonnypk or Kuindoor Tchiiktohi— Tlic Onkilon or Sodontiiry TcliuktL'lii— Their Moilo of Lifo Page 2!!8 CHAPTER XXV. ALASKA. lluhring Sea — Unalaschkiv — Thu Pribilow Ishmds— St. Matllnw — St. Lnurcnco — litliring's Straits — Purchase of Russian America by tlio United States — Sitka — Excessive Humidity of the Climate— Tlio Aleiits— Their Character— Tlieir Skill and Intrepidity in Hunting tho Sea Otter — Tho Sea Boar — Whalo Cliasiiig — Walrus Slaughter— Tho Sea Lion 306 CHAPTER XXVI. 'i'HK ESQUI.MAUX. Their wide Extension — Climate of tho Regions tlicy inhabit; — Their pliy^ical Appearance— Their Dress — Snow Huts — The Kayak or tho I5aidar— Hunting Apjiaratus and Weapons —Enmity between tho E.squiniaux and tho Red Indians — Tho ' 151of)dy Palls ' — Chase of the Ileindeer — Bird Catching— Whalo Hunting — Various Stratagems emjiloyed to aatch the Seal — Tho Keep Kuttuk— I'ear Hunting -Walrus Hunting — Awaklok and Myouk — Tho ICsquimaux Uog — < ianies and Sports — Angekoks — Moral Character — Self-reliance — Intelligence — Iligliuk — Commercial Eiigerness of tho Esquimaux — Their Voracity — Seasons of distress . . . . . . . . . . . .317 CHAPTER XXVII. THE I'UR TUADE OF TDK HUDSON'S HAY TERRITORIES. Tlio Coureur dos Bois — The Voyagcur — Tho Birch-bark Canoe — The Canadian Fur Trade in the last Century— Tho Hudson's Bay Company — Bloody Feuds between the Nortli-West Coniiiany of Canada and tho Hudson's liay Company —Their Amalpiniation into a New Company in 1821— Keconstruet ion of tho Hudson's Bay Company in 1803- Forts or Houses — Tho Attiliawmeg — Infhniico of tho Company on its Savage Dependents — The Black Bear or Baribal-'J'ho r.rown Bear — Tho Grisly Bear- Tho Racoon— Tho American Glutton — 'J'lio Pine Marten — Tho Pekan or Woodshock — Tho Chinga — Tho Mink— Tho Cana- dian Fish-otter— Tho Crossed Fox— The Black or Silvery I'ox — Tho Canadian Lynx or Pishu— The Ice Hare— Tho Beaver— Tho Musquash . . . .'i.SS CHAPTER XXVIll. THE CREE INDIANS, OR EYTHINyLWCK. Tiie various Tribes of the Crees— Their Conquests and suhsequrnt Defeat — Their Wars with the Blackl'eet Their Character— Tattooing — Their Dross Fondness t'nr ihiir Cliildron The Cree (.'radio Vapour Batlis- Games 'i'luir relifiifjiiH ideas — The Cree Tartarus and l^lysium , , , ... '.i.'id ,1\ ('«»\Ti:.\Ts. (MIAI'TKR XXIX. T II !•; T I N N T; I N n I a \ s. Tilt) Viirious Trilii'H nf tlio Tiiiiu'i fiidiatiM— Tho I»i(tliiiig— Tlio liare Iridiana— I>o(ir.iilt'(l Stato of tlio Womilii — I'lMC'lical S(K"iali.>-t.s— Cliamctcr— CnicUy Id tho Aj.""! :iiiil Iiitinii Pago 301 CHAPTICK XXX. I UK :,or( iii:l:s. or kutciiin ixoians. Till) Couiiti'iis tlioy iiiliaMt— Tlkir Aiipcaraiico ami D.vss— Tlicir Lovo of Finory — (Condition of tlio Wonuii — 8traii;;o Customs— CiiaracUr-l'Vuds witli tho I'sijiiimanx— Tlu'ir siispii-iotis and timorous Lives — Pounds for i-ati'liinj.; Hi'iu- di'ir — Tlu'ir Lodges ........... 370 CUAPTEU XXXI. ARCTIC VOYAGBi? OF DISCOVKRY, FBO.M THK CABOTS TO BAFFIN. Tho First Scandinavian Discoverer of .\niorica — Tho Cnbots — Willougliliy and ("hancollor (l.'j.W-l,').-)!) -Stephen IJurrough (lo.'Sr))— Froliislier (L57(> IftTf Davis (l,')85-lo87)— llarontz, Cornolif, and Brant (IMl)— Wintering of tlio Duteh Navigators in Novaya Zemlya (ir)9C<-1597)— John Knight (160G)—Mur- dorod by tho Ksquiniaux— Henry Hudson (1607-1609)— Baffin (1616) . .377 A. I CHAPTER XXXIL ARCTIC VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY, FRO.M I'.AFFIN TO Jl'CLINTOCK. r.iiihan nnd Franklin — Ross and Parry (1818) — Discovery of Jlelvillo Islamic Winter Harbour (1819-1820)— Franklin's First Land .Tourney— Dreadful SufTerings— Parry's Second Voyage (1821-1823)— Iligliuk— Lyon (1821)— Parry's Tliird Voyage (1824)— Franklin's Second Land Journey to tlio Shores of tho Polar Sea — lloochey — Parry's Sledgo Journiy towanls tho Polo— Sir .Fo!in Ross's Second Journey— Five Years in tho Arctic Ocean — Hack's Dis- covery of Great Fish River — Deaso and Simpson (1837-1839) — Franklin and Crozior's last Voyage (184.3) — Searching Expeditions — Richardson and Jiae— Sir James Ross — Austin— Penny — Do Haven — Franklin's First Winler Quarters discovered by Oinmancy — Kennedy and Dellot — Ingloficld — Sir E. Delcher — Kellott— M'Cluro's Discovery of tlie North-West PaHsago—Collinson — llollot's Death— Dr. Rao learns tho Deatli of the Crews of the ' Erebus' and 'Terror'— Sir Leopoll M'Clintock 391 CHAPTER XXXm. RKCKNT ARCTIC DISCOVERIES. Kano sails up Smith's Sound in the ' Advance' (18.53) — Winters in Ron.<o Erother Dr. Hayes d — Mount l''i"fy K' riM,Ivi'« itivin a S.cnnd WiniiriuLr in W.'n^s. 1.,, r |!,iv I 'rpnrinr,. ■ in. I l.'.Hirn of Fart of iji,. Cvw SuffTiriL^i of th.' Wlnt.T 'I'll- Sliip :il,andoii, ,1 nn.it .lonrniy to rpiTiinvik Kama's Death in tli.' Ifavannali |lS.-.7i Mr. Ilayis' \'oya Fast Coast of (in'enland -The 'F,,!aris'— .\li and l"'n iieii Ini- portanoo of the i'isheries— Tho Banks of Newfoundland Mode of Kishinir - Throiiters, H.'aders. Splitters, Salt^rs, and Fu-kers - Forrs and Storms Seal ''iitehintr .(;;., CIIAPTKR XXXV GRKKXLANP. A mysterious Region— Ancient Scandinavian Colonists— Thuir Decline and Fall — Hans Egodo— His Trials and Success— Foundation of Godtliaali -Herreidnith .Missionarie8--Lindeno\v— The Scoresbys— Clavering— The Danish Seltlenn nis in Creenland— The Greenland Esquimaux— Seal Catching -The White Dolphin — The Narwhal — Shark Fishery— Fiskcrniisset -llirds— Reindeer Hunting— Di- digenous Plants— Drift-wood - ^Mineral Kingdom— Modeof Life of the Greenland Esquimaux— Tho Danes in Greenland— Beautiful Scenery— Ico Caves . 440 PART IT. THE ANTARCTIC REGIONS. CHAPTER XXXVL Tin; ANTAKCTIC OCEAN. Comparative View of the Antarctic and Arctic Regions— Inferiority of Climate of the former — Its Causes — The Now Shetland Islands -South Georgia —The Peruvian Stream — Sea Birds — The Giant Petrel— The Albatross- The I'eng-.iin -The Austral Whale— The Hunchback— The Fin-Back-Tlie Grampus - Battle with a Whale— The Sea-elephant— The Soutliorn Sea-bear- The Sea- ' 'opard — Antarctic Fishes 4G.) XVI CONTKNTS. CIlAlTKIi xxxvir. ANTAUCTIC VOVAfiKS OK DISCOVEKV. Cook's Discovorii'8 in tho Antarctic Ocean— IWUiii^jlmusin —Wedilell — IJiscoo — niiilony— Dutnont irUrvillo— Wilkes— Sir Jnincs Ross crosses tlio Antarolio Circle on Svw Year's Day, 1841 — Discovers Victoria Land --Dangerous Lanilin>? on Franklin Island — An Eruption of Mount Erebus— Tho Oroat Ico Harrier — J'rovidcntial Escape— Dreadful Gale— Collision— Hazardous Passage between Two Icebergs— Termination of the Voyage Pago 47i) CHAPTER XXXVIII. THE STRAIT OV MAOKt.r.AV. Description of tho Strait— Western Entrance— Point Dungrness— The Narrows — Saint Philiji's Ray — Cape Frowanl— Cirand Scenery- Port Famine — The Sedger River — Darwin's Ascent of Mount Tarn — Tiio Rachelor River— English Reach — Sea Reach — South Desolation — Harbour of Mercy — Williwaws — Di.'^- covery of the Strait by Magellan (October 20, 1021)— Drake— Sarmiento — Cavendish — Scliouten and Lo Mairo — Ryron - ISougainville- Wallis and Carteret — King and "Fitzroy — Settlement at Punti Arenas - Increasing Passage through tho Strait— •. future Highway of Commerce .... 490 CHAPTER XXXIX. PAlAOuNrA AND TIIK I'ATAOONIANS. Differonco of Climate between East and West Patagrmia — Extraordinary Aridity of Eiist Patagonia, — Zoology — Tho Guannco— Tho Tucutuco — The Patagonian Agouti — Vultures — Tho Turkey-Euzzard — Tho Carrancha — The Chimango — Darwin's Ostrich — Tho Patagouians— Exaggerated i\ccounts of their Stature — Their I'iiysiognomy and Dress — Religious Ide.'is — Superstitions — Astronomical Knowledge — Division into Tribes — Tho Tent or Toldo — Trading Routes — Tho Great Cacique — Introduction of tho Horse — Industry — Amusements — Ch.aracter 603 t CHAPTER XL. THE F U E G I A N S. rii(!ir miserable Condition^Dogradation of Rody and Mind — Powers of Mimicry — Notions of Rarter- Causes of their low St-ite of Cultivation — Their Food — liinipets — Cyttai-iii Darwini— Constant Migrations — Tho Fuegian W^igwam — Weapons— Their probable Origin — Their Number and various Tribes — Con- stant Feuds— Cannibalism^Languago — Adventures of Fuegia Basket, Jemmy Rutton, and York Minster— Missionary Labours — Capt^ain Gardiner — His lamentable end 616 LI8T OF H.LITSTIIATIUNS. PLATK.S. TIh' 'RrtiliUH'iiiKl 'Terror' 1 ,. ,. . ' licindwr llunl. . fa /hri ndi/r ]!">{ , , , rroiifisiiimr ., , , , . . ,, ' ' Miiioiii,' hnlicTt^H J Hiitilf and Ari'tit' luix „ '21H .Mii>k Oxen and Klks . (o/nfv ji\ XIX. JiikutH The Whistling Swan . 2.')2 2.')8 XXXIU. XX. IJu.ssiiin J)(ig Sledgo . 250 Tho Rlack Guillemot 274 XXXIV. XXI Ochot>ik . Tho Scoter, or Black 27^ Diver . 280 XXII. The Aleiitinn Islands . 281 XXXV. The Silvery Fox 289 XXIII retrop."iulowsk . Tho Esfjuimaux Dog . 290 297 XXIV. Tho Sedentary Tchuk- tehi and their XXXVI. Tents . 298 The Polar Ilaro . 305 XX''. Natives of Unala- selika 306 XXXVII. Tlio Sen Bear . 316 XXVI. l'>quimaux watching a xxxvm. Seal Hole 317 The Narwhal . 337 XXVII. Hudson's Bay Post The Black Bear . 338 3o5 XXXIX. XXVIII. Cree Wigwams in Summer . 3o6 XL. The Mink . 3C3 TAdR The Rocky MoiiritainH at tho Bind of tho IMai'kinziu . . 301 Tho Lynx . . 3t;o Kutchin Nafivos . 3"0 Tho Pine Marten . 370 Hill at R;i)iiilN on Biar Lake River . 377 Tho Musquash . . 300 The Tiirso Rock near Piout DciisThomii- son, North Coast of America . . 391 Tho Groat Northern Diver . 122 The Great Humboldt Glacier . . . 423 The I{jicoon . . 438 Icel)ergs on tho Banks of Newfoundland . 439 Red-breastud Mergan- ser . . 448 Portraits fif Green- land Natives . . 449 Tho Colony of Suk- kertoppen . to/acc 4.')6 The Snow Goose . 461 Capo Crozier and Mount Terror . 405 Christmas Harbour, Kerguelen's Lnnd . 474 Tho Sperm Whalo . 478 Mount Minto . . 479 The Sea Elephant . 489 The Strait of Magel- lan . . . 490 The Wandering Alba- tross . . . 502 Group of Patjigonians 503 The Guanaco . .514 SUiten Island — Cape Horn . . .515 The Penguin . . 523 ? ^ VAdK [oiinlninH ul (if tho , . 3r>t . 309 ivrs 370 irtoH 37(1 ipiils on UiviT . 377 Hh . 3U0 idok near NTliomji- Const nf • 301 J^orllurn , 122 umboldt . 423 . . 438 10 Banks idland . 439 MiTgan- • 448 Grcun- e8 . 449 of 8uk- . (o/aci •4.56 30S0 461 er and ror 405 larbnur, B Lmd . 474 Vhalo . 478 > . 470 :ihant . 489 f Mngel- . 490 ngAlba- • 5(t2 igoniiins 603 . 514 d— Cape . 515 • • 523 The fdllmu'vg lUnstmh'ons arc taken, by permmimi oj Mr. Mui!KAY,/}-oiH Sir John Ross' Voyage, viz. Tlio ' Erobus ' and ' Terror ' ninong Icolwrgs. Capo Crozior and Mount Terror. Christmas Harbour, Kerguelen's Land. Mount Minto. } 1 -3 PART 1 THE AIICTIC KEGIONS. M Kuro[)( Oct'UU tlio Y, lli(' ("111 i Ml' 111' |n||l->r AMI .M (.••Hi \. cuAPTKif r. K AliC'IIC I, A MX. TliP lia'i'cti (Iri'iU'ls "V 'I'liiiilii - -Al'iindan.T nf Animal I.it'o on ilic Tilinlri in Siiminpr - 'l'li''ii' Sili-iii'c ami I)i'S()l,itiim in Wintf r - I'mtcpti"!! aUoviliil t" Vcp'tntjiin liylhi' Siinw -Fiowcr-prouiii in ihc liijlirst I.atitn.lrs- Cliaractrr ot Tuiidra \'ifrftatinn -Simtliorn lioundan -iini' nf tlii' liarron ilioninis -Th'ir K\iiiit Till' I'oivst /dill' -Ari'tio 'I'ri'os Sluwncs^ of tlicir (ipowtli .Mutiia.diy of till' Nni'llifni I''.)iv.st« .MciM|i|it'ir-^ 'i'hi' variciiis Causis wliii'Ii ilririn.ini. tin'' S'Vi ri'y i)f an An'ii.' Clitnatr Insular aial Contiiiciitil I'lisitinn ( ini.nls Wiii'l-i -Kxtrrnii's of (' .M oli'-ii'vi'd liy Sir V.. ilrlchcr ami Dr. K'am llow is Mm mMi' to siipiiort tli" IJiironiN of an Arrtif Wiiiiii'? Proof'; of a inilili-r t'liiiiat'> iiaviii^ oMci' rciii'tii'd in tlir Arotie Kririoiis lis canM' according:; to Dr. "-waid lli-cr — I'rculiai' IJcaulit's ol' tlii> Ari'lii; Jii'uions --Suii-ci Loni^; Lunar Ni;:liN 'I'lii' Aurora. V(JLAXCT'] iit a iiiii]! of tlio Arctic vctjrioiis shows us tliiii niiiuy of tlio rivers l)cIoHL;'iii<4' to the llirco continents — Muropc, Asiii. America — (liscliar<.''o tlicir waters into the Polar Ocean or its tril)ntarv hays. Tic territories drained by these streams, some of whieh (sucli as the jNEaeken/ie, tlie Lena, tlie Yenisei, and tlie Ohil, raidc amono- the ;,nant rivers of the I'livth. form, alonn' witli t]i(> ishinds witliin or near tlie TIIK 1'(>I,.M{ WORM). Arctic circk', the Vii.st ivgioii over which the frost-lviiig vcjo-iis supi'eme. Man styles himself the lord of the earth, iinJ may with some justice hiy claim to the title in more g(Miial lands where, armed with the pl(ni<4h, he compels the soil to yield him a variety of fruits; hut in those desolate tracts which are winter-bound during the <,n"eater part of the year, he is generally a mere wanderer over its surface— a hunter, a tisherman, or a herdsman— and but few small settlements, separated from each other by iuimense deserts, <,'ive proof of his havino- made some weak attempts to establish a footinj^. It is ditHcult to determine with precision the limits of the Arctic lands, since many countries situated as low as latitude OU' or even ')0\ such as South ( Jreeidand, Lalmidor, Kam- tschatka, or the couutry about Lake Baikal, have in their climate and productions a decidedly Arctic character, wliilt^ others of a far more northern position, such as the coast of iSorway, enjoy even in winter a remarkably mild tem- pi'rature. But they are naturally divided into two principal and well-maike' towards them with a en o-rounds,' ' tundri ' in L's is caused by the cold inds or the s and miles re the blast spect of the Kiri. Dino-y iii(»n, and a have found a o relieve the hi winter, when animal life has mostly retreated to the south or souj^fht a refuj^e in burrows or in caves, au awful silence, interrupted only by the hootinj,' of a snow-owl or the yt'lpiiit,' of a fox, rei^Mis over their vast expanse ; but in spring', when tlie brown earth reai)[)ears from under the melted snow and tlie swam}»s beyin to thaw, enormous Hiyhts of wild birds appear upon the scene and enliven it for a few months. All admirable instinct leads their win^vd legions from dls- tiiiit climes to the Arctic wildernesses, where in the morasse or lakes, on the banks of the rivers, on the flat strands, or alony; the lish-teemin<^ coasts, they hnd an abundance of food, and where at the same time tliey can with greater security build their nests and rear their youiiy. Some rciiiain on the skirts of the forest-reyion ; others. Hying further northwards, lay their eggs upon the naked tundra. Eagles and hawks follow the traces of the natatorial and stiand birds; troops of j»t:irmigans roam among the stunted bushes ; and when the sun shines, the iinch or the snow- bunting warbles his merry note. While thus the warmth of summer attracts hosts of migratory birds to the Arctic wildernesses, shoals of salmon and sturgeons enter the rivers in obedience to the instinct that forces them to cpiit the seas and to swim stream upwards, tor the purpose of depositing their spawn in the tranrpiil sweet waters of the stream or lake. About this time also the reindeer leaves the foivsts to feed on the herbs and licliens of the tundra, and to seek along the shores fanned by the cooled sea-breeze some protection against the attacks of the stinging Hies that rise in myriads from the swam[)s. Thus during several months the tundra presents an ani- uiateil scene, in which man also plays his part. Tlu- liirds ii' the air, the lishes c)f the water, the Ijeasts of the earth, areall obliged to pay their tribute to his various wants, t(» ajtpease his hunger, to clothe his body, or to gratify his insatiable avarice. But as soon as the first fri>sts of September announce the approach of winter, all animals, with but few exceptions, hasten to leave a region where the sources of life must soon fail. The geese, ducks, and swans return in dense Hocks to the soutlt ; the straiid-bii'ds seek in some lower latitude a n 6 Tin: I'oi.Ai; W()i{M>. suftor soi! Avliicli allows tluir .sliiirp beak to sei/o a luirrowiiiL' j)iry ; tilt! water-l'owl iorsaku the bays ainl elianiit'ls that will snoii In- blitcketl up with ice; the rciiKh'cr one*' inoiv rotiirn to the forest, and in a short time notliiiilain. Soon a thick niar.tle (tf snow covers the hardened earth, the frozen lake, the ice-bound river, and conceals them all — seven, eit^ht, nine months lonn — under its monotonous pall, except where thi! furious north-east wind sweeps it awav and lavs bare the naked rock. This snow, which afttn' it has once falli'ii i»ersists until the lony summer's day has etfectually thawed it, protects in an admirable manner the vej^'etatiou of the hi<>'her latitudes a^'iiinst the cold of the Ioul*' winter season. For snow is so bad a conductor of heat, that in mid-winter in the hi^h latitude of 7S^ oO' (Rensselaer Bay), Avhile the surface tt'inperature was as low as —'-'Af, Kane founil at two feet deep a tenn>erature of — ass the long winter in a comparatively mild temperature, high enough to maintain tlieir life, while, without, icy blasts — capable of converting mercury into a solid body — howl over the naked wilderness ; and as the first snow-falls are nijre cellular and less condensed than the nearly impalpable powder of winter, Kane justly observes that no 'eii>n a tliick Vozen lake, ei^lit, nine where tlie ya biire the ■rsists nntil l)r(»tect.s ill er latitudes I'^ur snow is n the hi^h the surl'acL iit two feet 1(1 at eiyht le tVeeziiifj- low-niantle, ii|);iratively life, while, •ury into a IS the first than the y observes tiieked in about the this pro- ths circles •alls forth time, even re able to pe Consti- •y Miiiturn rth which, ariety and s twinkled hick weed ; •oj^'uised a .a solitary hesperis — the Arctic representative of the wallflower oflldllH'. Next to the lichens and mosses, which form the chief vegetation of the treeless zone, the crucifene, the j';rasses, the siixitVa^^as, the Ciiryophylla;, and the compositie are the families of plants most larn tin,' limits of the forests; in others where the con- figuration of the land prevents their iietion, the woods advance further to the nortli. Thus the barren grounds attain their most southerly limit in Labrador, where the}- descend to latitude 57°, and this is sufficiently exphiined by the position of that bleak peninsula, bounded on three sides by icy seas, and washed by cold currents Irom the north. On the op[»osite coasts of Hudson's Bay tliey begin about 00°, and thence gradually rise towards the mouth of the Mackenzie, where the forests advance as high as (i.s", ur even still farther to the north along the low banks of that river. From the ^Mackenzie the barrens again desceiul until th/rs siiiiricd, Lan'.r Hibirini), the Picea obovata, and the Pinus cembra; while in the Hudson's Bay territories the woods l>i-iucipally consist of the white and black spruce {Abies iillxi ct niijra), the Canadian larch {Larix. canadensis) and the grey jiine {I\'niis ])(tnJisiana). In both continents birch trees grow further to the north than the coniferrc, and the dwarf willows form dense thickets on the shores of every river and lake. Various species of the service tree, the ash and the elder are also met with in the Arctic forests ; and both under the shelter of the woods and beyond their limits. Nature, as if to compensate for the want of fruit trees, produces in favour- able localities an abundance of bilberries, bogberries, craii- l)erries, &c. {Empeiunn, Vaeciniuut), whose fruit is a great boon to man and beast. ^Vllen congealed by the autunnial frosts, the berries frequently remain hanging on the bushes until the snow melts in the following June, and are then a considerable resource to the llockb of water-fowl migrating 1 AUCTIC I'OUKSTS. ', Asia, and of Europe. :h Aiiiorieii, liut the 'ill territory would bo of less wastes, oral tribes, extent than len wo con- , stretehin<^ from lo° to 'r a surface Kin/r,s the Piiuis the woods )ruce {Abies sis) and thfi s birch trees d the dwarf ry river and sh and the both under S^atuiv, as if s in favour- jrries, craii- is a great le autumnal the bushes are then a I migrating' to their northern breeding-places, or to the bear awakening from his winter sleep. Another distinctive character of the forests of the high hititudes is their apparent youth, so that generally the traveller would hardly suppose them to be mi>re than fifty years, or at most a century old. Their juvenile api>earance increases on advancing northwards, until suddenly their decrei>id age is revealed by the thick bushes of lichens which clothe or hang down from their shrivelled boughs. Further to the south, large trees are found scattered here and there, but not S(j numerous as to modify the general ai»[)earance of the forest, and even these are mere dwarfs when compared with the gigantic firs of more temperate climates. This [ihenomenon is sutticiently explained by the shortness of the summer, which, though able to bring forth new shoots, does not last loJig enough for the formati(jn of wood. Hence the ''rovvth of trees becomes slower and slower on advancing to the north ; so that on the banks of the Great Bear Lake, foi- instance, 400 years are necessary for the formation of atruidc IK it thicker than a man's waist. Towards the confines of the lundra, the woods are reduced to stunted stems, covered with 1 •lighted buds that have been nnablo to develop themselves into branches, and which prove by their numbers how fre- (juently and how vainly they have striven against the wind, until finally the last remnants of arboreal vegetation, van- quished by the blasts of winter, seek refuge under a carpet of lichens and mosses, from which their annual shoots hardly venture to peep forth. A third peculiarity which distinguishes the forests of the north from those of the tropical world is what may be called their hariiiless character. There the traveller finds none of those noxious jilants whose juices contain a, deadly [)oison, and even thorns and prickles are of rare occurrence. No venomous snake glides through the thicket ; no crocodile lurks in the swamp; and the northern beasts of prey — the bear, the lynx, the wolf — are far less dangerous and blood- thirsty than the large felidic of the torrid zone. The comi)arativelv small number of animals living in flie Aivtic forests corresponds with the Jiionotony of their vege- tation, lii'ii' we should seek in vain for that immense varietv '^ 10 Till', l'(»|,.\l! \V()|:i,|). of insects, ov tli(»,si; troops of j^iiudy birds wliifli in tliu lira/iliiin woods excito the admiriition, and not unfn'(|nt'ntly cause the despuir of tli«! wanderer ; here we slioidd in viiin expect to liear tlie elaniorons voices that resound in the; tr'ives Asia, or of 'xpected to , and hence such as the leinlya, i^c, rdant -with elds of ice, he ver«i,-e of les, no land edge with eternal siiow, or where winter has entirely snlxlued the powers ot' veLTctatioii. The reindeer of Spit/.herp'ii lind near bU' X. li. lichens or g'rasses to feed iqion ; in favourable seasons tlie snow melts by the end of June on the i>lains oi' Melville Island, and nnmerons leniniing's recpiirin^^ veit/l)er<,'('n in tlu; month of Jamiar)'. Tho vojajifcs <»f Kane and Ikdclier have made us acquainted with the lowest temperatures ever felt by man. On Feb. 5, IS.")!., ^vhile the former was wintering' in Smith's Sound ("8" o7' N. lat.), the mean of his best splint-thermometer showed the unexampled temperature of —08^ or 1(m»' below the free/in y;-point of water. Then chloric ether became solid, and carefully prepared chloroform exhibited a <,'ranular jiellicle on its surface. The exhalations from the skin invested the exposed or partially clad parts with a wreath of vapour. The air had a perceptible pun^-eiicy upon inspiration, and everyone, as it were involuntarily, breathed j^^uardedly with comprooSv'd lips. About the same time (February i) and 10, 1851-), Sir E. Belclier experienced a cold of —55° in Wellin^don Channel (75° ;J1' N.j, and the still lower tem- perature of — 02° on January iJJ, l85o, in Northumberland Sound (70° 52' N.)- Whether the temperature of the air descends still lower on advancing towards the Pole, or -whether these extre'ine de<^Tees of coll are not sometinies surpassed in those moun- tainous regions of the north which, though seen, have never yet been explored, is of course an undecided question : so much is certain, that the observations hitherto made durinly of aiiimul fond, of llcsli and fat, enriches the blood and enables it to circulate more vi;;'orously. Thus not only the hardy native of the north, but even the healthy traveller soon ^'ets ac- customed to bear without injury the ri<,'ours of an Arctic winter. ' The mysterious componsations,' says Kane, ' by which we ada[it ourselves to climate are more strikin;^' here than in the trollies. In the Polar /one the assault is immediate and sudden, and, milike the insidious i'atalily of hot countries, nroduces its results rapidly. It recpiires hardly a single winter tt> tell who are to bo the heat-makinjjf and accliinatisetl men. retersen, for instance, who has resided for two years at Upernavik, seldom enters a room with a fuv. Another of our party, Gleorpfo Riley, with a vigorous constitution, established habits of free exposure, and active cheerful tem- perament, has so inured himself to the cold, that he sic. ps t»n our sled^'e journeys without a blanket oi* any other covering than his walking suit, while the outside temperature is — )U . There are many proofs that a milder climate once reigned in the northern regions of the globe. Fossil pieces of wood, [H'tritied acorns and fii'-cones have been found in the interior (tf Kanks' Land by ]\r'Clure's sledging parties. At Anakerdluk in X(n'th Greenland (70° N.) a large forest lies buried on a mountain surrounded by glaciers, 1,080 feet above the level of ihe sea. Not only the trunks and branches, but even the haves, fruit-cones, and seeds have been preserved in the soil, and enable the botanist to determine the species of the plants to whicli they belong. They show that, besides lirs and M Till. i'ol.Ai; WiM.'I.D. st'(|iir»iiis, oiilit/.l»i'ryt'ii WHS lilvcwisi' covfrcd willi shitrjv t'ltfi ^ts. 'I'lic simii' |nt|»iiiiv> lltld tllC SillllC SWillll|>-cy|irt'SS {'I'n rnilimil iliil.liiiil) wlijcli fiit'ii llourislicd ill Nnrlh (in't'idiiiid Imvi' Imi-u t'ui'iid in ii lossiliscd stiilt' lit lii'Il Sound (7oh e'vow tifteen de^^i-ees flirt her to the north than thophin- tain — and the mioccne jieriod no douht e.\hil)ited tho same |»ro|(ortioii. Thus the iio[)lars and firs wliich then e;n'\v in S|»it/here'en alone- witli plantains and lindens ninst have rau;;('d as far as the P(do itst'If, siii)jK»sin^ that point t(» l»e drv land. Tu tho luioeene times the Arctic /one (Evidently presented a very ditferont a.s[)ect from that which it wears at present. N'ow. dnrin;.^ the •^•i-eater part of {I., year, an immense ehicial desort, which through its tloatinLj 'H'ri4;s and dritt-ice de]tresses tho tempei'atnre of countries sitnared far to tlu; south, it thon consisted of verdant lands covei-ed with hixiiriaiit forests and liathed hy an open sea. What may liave Ijeon the cause of tiiese amazinj:'' ohane^os of climate 'J Tho readiest answer somns to bo — a difforont distribution of soaand land; V>ut thoro is no reason tolndievo tiiat in the miooono times there was less hind in tho Ai-ctic /one than at present, nor can any ixtssibh? combination of water and dry land be innie;ined sutticient to account for the s;ro\vth of lanrels in Greenland or of plantains in Spit/her^'on. Dr. Oswald IFoor is inclined to seek for an oxi>lanation of th(> phenomenon, not in more local terrestrial chancres, but in a dilVenMice of the earth's position in the heavens. We now know that our sun, with his attendant i)lanets and satellites, performs a vast cii'<'lo, on)braoini^- porhaj)S i (11 \\(ir. IN \i;' Tit ii.iM \Ti;. 1ft •n laiiri'ls. r (it'iK'Vii, Irv wllt'l'r 11' 'jfi'tiiiiiil. >it/lH'i'y<'ii lit' ji(»|»liir> ()*) wliicli ii'ikI ill it lisli iiiitii- US lliii'll !IS tinit's tlio tliiin thiit . rin'litci'II , iiiid till' 1 tlio plaii- tlio siiino 'II ;j;rt'\v in lUIst ilflVC! )iiit to !»<' |tr('S('ii1('tl it [)lVS»'llt. ISO i^liiciiil U'l>vosses I, it tlion )n'sts iinr tlioiisiiinls of vcjii's. I'i'MimI iiijtitlicr >t:ir. :mh1 tlml \\c ;irc n instil III I \ cntcriiii.' m-w iT'.'ions of hi nice nut iii\ < llcil bv our c,irtli licfni'i', \Vc Clinic rrmii iIh' niiKiiou n, ninl |i|iiii;;c iiitii ilic iiiikiiowii ; but so iiiiicli is cci'tiiiii tli;it our ^ohir s\-.tciii rolls :it |iicsciil lliruiiyli a s|iiic.' but tliinlv peopled wiili stars, ami there i-. no reason to tluiib* that it inav ome liave wiiinlercil throny:h oiie of t hose cclcst iai provinces where, IIS the telescope shows lis, consiejlat Ions ai;' far more tlcnsch cliistcreil. Kilt, as evers star is a bli/iii;^ sun. the i.vrcati r ur lesser iiiiiiiIm r of these heiiveiily liudies must evidently have a piopoit innate inlliieiice upon the teiii[ierature of luir |4;|obc, ;iiid thus we may suppose llmt iIiiriiiLT the miocene period oiir earth, beiiii,' at that time in a /'oywi/n/zs sidereal reeioii, enjoyed the lienelit of ii liii^lier teiiijieratiire which cli. tiled even its poles with Verdure. In the Cdiirse of iiy;es the sun conducted his herd of planets intti iiioi-c snliliiry and colder regions, which caused the warm iiiii ceiie times id be Inllowed by (he glacial period, ibiiiiiLT which the Swiss flat lands bore an .Arctic character, and linally the sun eiiiei';j;ed into a space of an intermediate character, which determines the presi'iit condition of the climates of our ;_dobe. ThoU'di Xuture ■'•cnerallv wears a more stern and forbid- dinj,' aspect on advancin<^" towards the Pole, yet the hi<.;'h latitudes have many heauties of their own. Nothiiin- can exceed the ma^'uifict'iice of an Arctic sunset, (dothin^ the s!i( w-clad niountains and the skies with all the i^lorics ot cdliiur; or be iiidie si-reiiely beautiful than tlu' (dear star- light iiinht. illumiin>d by the brilliant imtoii, whi(di for days ('"iiitiiinally ciiudes anaiiid the horizon, never setting- until she has nm her Ioul;" course of bri^'htiicss. The uniform whiteness of the landscape and the i^'eiieral transparency of the atiiiosplierc add to the lustre of her bi'ar.is, which serve the natives to H-uide their nomadic life, and to lead them to tlieir huiitin\' the Aurora. Ni'/ht covers the snow-clad earth ; the stars yliniiiier feebly ihn)iii;h the haze which so fre(|nontly dims their brilliancy in the liiLrh latitudes, when suddenly a i)road and clear bow of lin-ht spans 1 1 < 10 THE POLAR WOKLD. the horizon in the direction where it is traversed by the magnetic meridian. Tiiis bow sometimes remains for several hours, heaving or waving to and fro, before it sends fortli streams of light ascending to the /:enith. Sometimes these flaslies proceed from the bow of light alone; at others thcv simnltaneously shoot forth from many opposite parts of the hori/on, and form a vast sea of tire whose brilliant waves arc eoiitinnally changing their position. Finally they all nnitc in a magnificent crown or cupola of light, with the a}ipearanee of which the phenomenon attains its hignest degree ol splendour. The brilliancy of the streams, which are com- monly red at their base, green in the middle, and light yellow towards the zenith, increases, while at the same tinu' they dart with greater vivacity through the skies. The colours are wonderfully transpar^-i.t, the red approaching to a clear blood- red, the green to a pale emerald tint. (Jn turning from the flaming firman;'(;nt to the earth, this also is seen to glow with a magical light. The dark sea, black as jet, forms a striking contrast to the white snow plain or the distant ice mountain ; all the outlines tremble as if they belonged to tlu> nnreal world of dreams. The imposing silence of the night heightens the charms of the magnificent spectacle. But gi'adually the crown fades, the bow of light d" ^solves, the streams become shorter, less frequent and less vivid : and finally the gloom of winter once more descends npon the northern desert. ■Jiii: inii'.Ai' ,-,\(nvv out,, versed by tlu' ins lor several it sends fortli netimes these lI others they ! parts of the lant waves arc they all unite he a})pearancL- st decree of lich are eoni- le, and lio-ht ho same tinu' ; sldos. The >roaching' to a . On turn in J,' ilso is seen to Ic as jet, forms lie distant ice ^longed to the I of the night icle. ight d" ^solves, d less vivid : ends upon the S ' i ■ """"- "-^ ' — ^'^''^ ^^r^'>•^•'*^^^^- ■''■- '^^"f^mi \;:^^~. ''''. T MI>K (i\l:\ AMI ll.KS. .. •..'. »s .> -■/• y— "i- -/:-;;5*lT^. ■ t^'^ji'S-r, -,.j^^ -■■'53! lii;i.M)i.i:ii IKAVJ.I.I.I.SU IN I.Al'l.AMi, --- '^S'S*.-? CHAPTER T[. i^^SS ARCTIC liAND QUADlirPEDS AND I'.IRDS. 'I'lir luimlriT— Stnii'tuiT .it ii.s I''.ini — '.'laltcriii^r Xhi'm' wlini Walkiii:.' -Antlers hlxlraonliiiiiry (lltac'.ii'y I'uwci- — Tlic I ■d iiidii' .'\Im>-, I'ivmhI :iiiiI t'lU'imr lv'ali;;v. ..I' di,' Kriiilrrr Il-i iiivaliial.lf tjualit ics a> an Al'.l ir (In'ii. -• !.■ Aliin'a 1 — Krvuiis auaiiist, (1ppr"s-~iiiii - IJH'iiiirs (.f llir Ki 111 !iii' Till' Willi' -'riic llliiilnii or W.jlvfi'iiK;— <;alllii.s_Tijr iilk or M,i,,>c I)r,r Tin .Mu-'-ox - Till' W'iM Slicrp ot' till' Itcifky ^Mountains ~'\'\\r Silurian Aruiali 'I'li'' Aivlic I'(\\— lis ]>inr — 'I'lii'ir MiLnMliniis lunl IJii inii"- — Arctic Aiiatiilai — 'i'lir Sii.iw-ljiintiiiti; — Tho J,a[)laiid Iliiiiting — Th'- Soii-rairlc — I'l'DWii. il \<\ a I'liliiliin. rpil 1'] ivimkH'i- luiiy well bo c;illeii to the Lii[)- laiidrr or to tlie Saiiiojcde than tin 'slii[t of tli.j desort ' to tilt; waiulerin;,;' iJedoiiin. It is the only iiieniher of tho iiiiMiiToiis (leer fiinily that has heoii (huiicstieated l;y man ; IhiI Hi(in;4']v nnd>)nl)tedly tho most nsrful, it is by no .iioaiis ilie niosi comely of its race. Its clear dark eye has, indeed, a bciintiful expression, but it lias neillier the mible propor- tidiis (tf tlie sta;4' '•'>'" ^ho i^-raeo (d'the roebncK, and its thick M|iiai'e-toriiied Imdy is I'lr tVuiii liein^:' a nindel of ele^'ance. (• 1>^ Tin; I'oi.Ai; noKi.i). lis Icp-s iiiv sliort mill tliick, its I'cct broiul l>ut cxtromcly well a(lai»i('(l for walking ovt'r tlio snow or on a swainp^' yrouiitl. The front hoofs, which arc capable of j^rcat lateral expansion, curve upwards, while tlie two secondary ones beliind (which arc but slij^'htly developed in the fallow deer and other members of the family) are considerably prolonged : a structure which, by jjfivini^' th(^ animal a broader base to stand upon, pr(}vents it from sinlcin<^' loo deeply into the snow or the moniss. Had the foot of the reindeer been formed like that of our sta<^, it would have been as unable to drag the Laplander's sledge with such velocity over the yielding snow- fields as the camel would be to perform his long marches through the desert without the broad elastic sole-pad on which lie firmly paces the unstable sands. The short legs and broad feet of the reindeer likewise ennble it to swim with greater case — a power of no small importance in countries abounding in rivers and lakes, and where the scarcity of food renders perpetual migrations necessary. When the reindeer walks or merely moves, a remarkable clattering sound is heard to some distance, abont the cause of which naturalists and travellers by no means agree. Most l»robably it results from the gr- at length of the two digits of the cloven hoof, which when the aninxal sets its foot upon the ground separate widely, and when it again raises its hoof, suddenly clap ngaii.st each other. A long mane of a dirty wiiite colour hangs from the neck of the reindeer. In summer the body is brown above and white beneath ; in winter, long-haired and white. Its antlers are very different from those of the stag, having broad palmated summits, and branching back to the length of three or four feet. Their weight is frequently very con- siderable— twenty or twenty-five poinids ; audit is remark- able that both sexes have horns, while in all other members of the deer race the males alone are in possession of this ornament or weapon. The female brings forth in May a single calf, rarel}^ two. This is simill and wenk ; but after a few days it follows the mother, who suckles her young but a short time, as it is soon alijc \o rx'clc and to lind its food. 1 it cxtromoly II a swainp3' ^'I'eat lateral oiidary ones ) fallow doer y prolonged : ider base to iito the snow been f vciudoor gives very little milk — nt the very titmost, after the young has been weaned, a bottlefiil daily ; but the (|uality is excellent, for it is uncomnionly thick and nutritious. It consists almost entirely of cream, so that a great deal of wafer can be added before it becomes inferior to the best cow- milk. Its taste is excellent, but the butter made from it is rancid and hardly to be eaten, while the cheese is very good. In summer the reindeer lives upon green herbs or tlu; leaves of trees ; in winter his only food consists of moss, and the most surprising circumstance in his history is the in- stinct, or the extraordinary olfactory powers, whereby ho is enabled to discover it when hidden beneath the snow. However deep the Lichen ranrjiferbms may be burii'd, the animal is aware of its ]n'esenco the moment ho comes to the s|)(»t, and this kind of food is never so agreeable to him as when he digs for it himself. In his manner of doing this he is r('inark:ibly adroit. Having first ascertained, by thrusting his niu/zle into the snow, whether the moss lies bolow or not, he begins making a hole with his fore feet, and continues working until at length ho uncovers the lichen. No instance has ever occurred of a reindeer making such a cavity without, discovering the moss ho seeks. Judging from the lichen's ap[tearance in the hot months, when it is dry and brittle, one might easily wonder that so largo a quadruped should make it his favourite food and fatten upon it; but towards the month of September the lichen becomes soft, tender, an mountains of IMongolia and the banks of th<' Ufa as lar as Novaja Zenilya and SpitzlxM-gen. ]\Iany centuries ago - I>rol»al)iy during the glacial period — its range was still more 0 '2 i; n 1 20 TIIK I'OLAIJ WOKF.l). rxtciisivo, as rciiidt'or bonos arc fVcqiuMiily found in Froncli itnd (jcrniiin oiivcs, and boar tcstiniony to *lio soverity of tlio climate which at that time rei;,nied in CN.Mitral Europe, for th(> reindeer is a coM-loviny animal, and will not thrive under a milder slcy. All attempts to prolong' its life in our zoolofj^ical <4'ardens have failed; and even in the royal park at Stoekhohn lloyt^'uer saw some of these animals, which woi*e fpiite lananion of the northern nomad, whose simple wants it almost AvhoUy supplies. During his wanderings, it cai'ries his tent and scanty household furniture, or drags his sledge over the snow. On account of the weakness of its back-bone, it is less fit for riding, and r(>quires to be mounted with care, as a violent shock easily dislocates its vertebral column. You would hardly sui)pose the reindeer to b(; the same animal when languidly creeping along under a rider's weight, as when, unencumbered by a load, it vaults wMththe lightness of a bird over the obstacles in its way to obey the call of its master. The reindeer can be easily trained to drag a sledge ; but great care must be taken not to beat or otherwise illtreat it, as it then becomes obstinate and quite unmanageable. When forced to drag too heavy a load, or taxed in any way above ils strength, it not seldom turns round upon its tyrant, and attacks liini with ils horns and tore feet. T(i save himself 11 Froiu'h ty of tlio lO, for the under a oolorfical toekliolm L'liin<^uien liey could inner the lin air or ;iiii^ for ii is tireside jtomod to ,'ero by a domestic 5 subsist- 'rs about eiudosed countries doniestie u'int^ the fit coni- it almost his tent over the )ne, it is ?are, as a in. You nal when IS when, of a bird nuisier. )ut threat When ay above lint, and liimself I Tin: Ki:i\i)i;i;i{ and its i;ni:mii;s. •2\ from its fury, he is then obli^'ed to overturn his sledye, and to seek a refuye under its bottom until the rage of the animal has abated. Aftei the death of the reindeer, it may truly be said that uvery part of its body is put to some use. The tlesh is very j^'ood, and the ton^'ue and marrow are considered a jj^reat delicacy. The blood, of which not a drop is allowed to be lost, is either drank warm or made up into a kind of black- pudding. The skin furnishes not only clothing impervious to the cold, but tents and bedding ; ond spoons, knife-handles, and other household utensils arc made out of the bones and horns ; the latter serve also, like the claws, for the prepara- tion of an excellent glue, which the Chinese, who buy them for this purpose of the Russians, use as a nutritious jelly. In Tornea the skins of new-born reindeer are i)repared and sent to St. Petersburg to be manufactured into gloves, which are extremely soft, but very dear. Thus the cocoa-nut palm, the tree of a hundred uses, liiinlly renders a greater variety of services to the islanders of the Indian Ocean than the reindeer to the Laplander or the Samojede ; and, to the honour of these barbarians be it mentioned, they treat their invaluable friend and companion with a gi'ateful affection which might serve as an example to far more civilised nations. The reindeer attains an age of from twenty to twenty-five years, but in its domesticated state it is generally killed when from six to ten years old. Its most dangerous enemies are the wolf, and the glutton or wolverine {(Julo horadis or arcticioi), which belongs to the bJoodthirsty marten and weasel family, and is said to be of uncommon fierceness and strength. It is about the size of a large badger, between which animal and the pole-cat it seems to be intermediate, nearly re- sembling the former in its general figure and aspect, and agreeing with the latter as to its dentition. No dog is ciipable of mastering a glutton, and even the wolf is hardly abli' to scai'e it from its prey. Its feet are very short, so that it cannot run swiftly ; but it climbs with great facility upon trees, or ascends even almost perpendicular rock-walls, where it also seeks a refuge when jmrsucd. ^Vhen it p<'rceivos a herd of reindeer browsing near a ■H\ tn i ^1 '»•> TIIIC l'()J,.\i: UOKI.I). wood or a j»r('('i[)i(M', il, gcnornlly lies in wait upon ii l)riin<'li or somi' hij,'li clifl", iincl spring's down upon tlic first iiiiinial that comes within its reach. Sometimes also it steals un- awares ui)on its prey, and, suddenly bonndinj,' upon its back, ivills it by a sin<,de bite in the neck. Many fables worthy of Miinchha,us(;n have been told about its voracity ; for in- stance, that it is able to devonr two reindeer at (»ne meal, and that, when its stomach is exorbitantly distended with food, it will [tress itself between two trees or stones to make room for a new repast. It will, indeed, kill in one niyht six or ei^dit reindeer ; but it contents itself with suckini,' their blood, as the weasid does with fowls, and oats no more atone meal than any other carnivorous animal of its own size. Besides the attacks of its miyhtier enemies, the reindeer is subject to the persecutions of two species of gadfly, ■which torment it exceedingly. The one {(Edrus tarandi), called llurbma by the Laplanders, deposits its glutinous eggs upon the animal's back. The laivaj, on creeping out, immediately bore themselves into the skin, where by their motion and suction they cause so many small swellings or boils, which gradually grow to the size of an inch or more in diameter, with an opening at the top of each, through which the larva nuiy be seen imbedded in a purulent fluid. Frequently the whole back of the animal is covered with these boils, which, by draining its lluids, produce emaciation and disease. As if aware of this danger, the reindeer nuis wild and furious as soon as it hears the buzzing of the fly, and seeks a refuge in the nearest water. The other species of gadfly {(Eslrns nasalis) lays its oggs in the nostrils of the reindeer; and the larvio, boring them- selves into the fauces and beneath the tongue of the poor animal, are a great source of annoyance, as is shown by its frequent sniffling and shaking of the head. A pestilential disorder like th swamp ov the forest. The only time of the year when it eau bo easily chased is in the spring, when the softened snow gets covered during the nii'-ht with a thin crust of ice which is too weak to bear the animal's weight. Though not ranging so far north as the reindeer or the <.'lk, we find in the Old World the red-deer {LWviis elaiiliK.^) i-K f *;. 2?4 tin; i'(>lai{ woui.I). ill lilt' viciiiil} ol' DnmHiciiii in Xmwiiy, ami aluii'^ with tlio roebuck l)cy»iii«l i/ikc Uiiikal in Sihi-ria, while in AiiK-rira llic liir^'U-earoil deer {('rrcntf iiiurrotitt), and Uio Wapiti or Canada Hta<,' {Crrrtifi slroiitji/lo-cnuti*), cxlcnd their oxeui'sioiis beyond t)^i° N. lat. T''o hitter is JMUeh hir^^t r and of a .stron«^'er make tlian thi; Kurojiean red-deer, frequently yrowiiif,' to llie lieij^dit of" our iailest oxen, and possessiiijjf ;^reat activity as wi'll as streii<;th. The llesh is litthf pri/etl, but thi.' hide, when niaile into K'ather alter the Indian fashion, is said not to turn hanl in dryin;^', after l)ein<^' wet — acjuality which justly entitles it to a preferunco over almost every other kind of leather. One of the most remarkable quadvupeds of the hi^-li northern re^'ions is the musk-ox {Oinhon vioschiUiis), which by some naturalists has been considered as intermediate between the sheep and the ox. It is about ihe height of a deer, but of much sti>uler proi)ortions. The liorns are very broad at the base, almost meetinj,' on the forehead, and curviny down- wards between the eye and ears until about the level of the mouth, when they turn upwards. Its lonj? thick brown or l)lack hi.ir lian;^in<^' down below t^e middle of the lejj^, and coverin;;' on all parts t>f the anim il a line kind of soft ash- coloured wool, which is of the finest description and cajtabh? of fnrmijiy the most beautiful fabrics manufactured, enables it to reniaiu even during the winter beyond 7o° N. lat. In sprin<4', it wanders over the ice as far as Melville Island, or even iSmith's Sound, where a number of its bones were foinid by Dr. Kane. In Septendjer it withdraws more to the south, and spends the coldest months on the ver<,'e of the forest-region. Like the reindeer, it snbsists ehietly on lichens and grasses. It runs nimbly, and climbs hills and rocks with «^reat ease. Its fossil remains, or those of a very analogous species, have been discovered in Siberia : at Itvesent it is ex(dusively confined to the New World. In the Itocky IMountains, from the hiyh Mexican table- lands to beyond dcS" N. lat., dwells the wild sheep {(Jvls iiKHitniKt), distinguished by the almost circular bend of its large, triangular, transversely striped horns, from its relative the Sibei'ian argali {OcIk arijnd), which is supjio.sed to be the [laient of our domestic sheep, and far surpasses it in size uild usmni AiiCTIC FAINA. witli ilio icllra the )!' ( 'iiii;Ml:i H bey o I It 1 Htr<)ii»;('r owiii;^' to t activity tilt,' hide, 1 Silitl lH)t icli just!)' V liiiitl of tilt; liitfli which by ) b(.'t\v('cii (leer, bill bruiitl iit iiy; ihnvii- cl of the jrowii oi- ! k'j^'-, aiitl soft asli- l cajtablt! I, oiiablosi ° N. hit. lo Ishiiul, lies were more to verjife of hietly on hills anil lose of a jeria: at iin table- 'ep {Ocis 1(1 of its i relative lo be the t ill size iiinl ileliiiicy of llesli. jjoth Ihe American and the Asiatic wild sheep are in the hiLfliest deifree active and vi;^ft)rous, uscfinliiii; al»ni|»t [)re(i[»ifes with ^'reat aj^ility, and, like I lie wilil L^oat, ^'oin;jf over the narrowest and most dan;^'eroiis [•asses with perfect safety. Aiiioiiy; the carniv(jrons (ptadrupeds of the northern re- ^,'itins, many, like the lynx, the wolf, the bear, tlit* j,'hittt)n, and other nieiiibers of the v.'easel tribe, have tlieir head-tiuarters ill the forests, anil (»nly occasionally rttani over the tninlras ; hat the Arctit! fox {i'mils /r/;/«y/^(.s) almost extdiisively inhabits the treeless wastes that friii;^'e the Polar ocean, and is loiiiid oil almost all the islands that lie biirletl in its bosom. This |iivtty little eroatt're, which in winter ^'rows perfectly whitt\ kimus how tt) protect itself a;4ainst the most iii^'nst> cohl, either by seeking,' a refufje in the clefts of rocks, or by biinowiiiL,' to a considerable depth in a sandy soil. It principally j»reys upon lemmiiiL^'s, stoats. Polar hares, as well as upon all kinds of water-fowl and their e<4';^s ; but, when janched by hunger, it does not disdain the carcases of lisli, or the molluscs and crustaceans it may chance to pifk II |i on the shore. Its enemies are the j^'lutton, the snowy owl, and nnin, who, from the equator to the Poles, leaves no creature unmolested that can in any way satisfy his wants. Tlu! lemmings, of which there are many species, are small rodents, peculiar to the Arctic regions, both in the New and ill the Old Worltl, where they are found as far to the noilh as vegetation extends. They live on grass, roots, the shoots of the willow, and the dwarf birch, but chietly on lichens. They d(, not gather hoards of provisions lor the winter, liiit live u[»on what they li»:d beneath the snow. They seldom pri>ve injurious to man, as the regions they nihabit are generally situated beyond the limit.^ of agriculture. Fnan the voles, to whom they are closely allied, tlioy are distinguished by having the foot-sole coveretl with stitf hairs, and by the strong crooked claws with which their fore feet are armed. The best known sjiecies is the Norwegian lem- ming (Li'iiitiiiis ;(()r((V7/(V».s'), which is foinid on the high moun- tains of the Dovrefjeld, ami further to the north on the dry [•arts of llu' tundra, where it inhabits small burrows uiidt.'r stones or in the nu^ss. Its long and thick hair is of a tawnv ( ' TIIK I'ol.AK WDllMi. f Cfiloiii-, iiiid prcflilv m;irlc('(l wil li Idiick spots. The mi!.,'r;if ions of the Iriimiiii'jf Inivc Imtii j^rossly oxii'^'u'rnitfil Ity Oliiiis l\r!i;,'inis iiii«l l'oiil(»|>|ii(lim, to wlioiii the iial uriil liis'ory ol tlio iHjrtli owi's so iiiiiiiy liildi's. As llicy hrrcd sovi'nil times ill tlilication niij,dit else endan;^'er the balance of existence in the northern rej^ions. The inclemencies of the climate are a cdiief means for kee[»inyf them in check. A wet summer and a cold and snowless autumn destroy them by millions, and then of course years are necessary to recruit their numbers. ^Vith the exception of the bear and the hedyeho:;, they are pursued by all tlu> northern carnivora. The wolf, the fox, the <,dutton, the nuirten, the ermine, devour them with avidity, and a yood lemmiiif^' season is a, time of nnusnal plenty for the hnnery Lapland do<^. The snowy owl, whose dense pluniat,'e enables it to be a constant resident on tin* tundra, almost exclusively frequents those places where lemmiuLfs, its favourite iood, are t(» be found ; the buz/ards are constantly active in their destruction; the crow feeds its yonii>^' with lemminj^-s ; and ev(Mi the poor Lap, when jn-essed by hun^'er, seizes a stick, and, for want of belter t^ame, ^-oes out lemmin(l.'). MI(il!.\T(>i;V ItlUltS. iiiit;i'!itii)nH by Oliiils liistory til .'iTiil (iiiit's ' (»r ('dur.si' s, iiiid aif i^rr iiMc to L'Iddlll, I'nr III t III' I)(i- ! Iciiiiiiiii;^', ruilli'ss ill tiiiiiitt' cir- •S, !IS tllfil' l);iliiii<'(' ol' ics (if the c'lict'K'. A stroy tliL'in { to rccTuit LV aiul till' Ciiriiivora. 10 ermine, L'sison is a .lo!,^ Tlie I constuiit Ills thosi! be fouiid ; L'tioii ; the the poor , for waul. 1 rejoices iiieal. l»taniiii^'aii under the II.' L;'reatev c re;4'ions. \S, are the he dreary :oii. Tlie the s. Nor need they fear to iilniifje into the very lieart of the Arctic zone, for, the llij,'ht of a <,'oose beiii^' forty or fifty miles an honr, these bii'ds nuiy breed in the remotest northern siilitiule, and in a few lionrs, on a fall of deep antnmn snow, convey themselves by their swiftness of winy to better feed- iu^' l^a'ounds. Uiu^ of the most interesting of the Arctic birds is the snow- biinliiij^' {I'li^clrophancH nivulin), which may [)roperly be called llic I'olar siii<,'in<,' bird, as it breeds in the most northern isles, such as Siiitzberj^'eu and Novaja Zt'inlya, or on the lii<^dic?i, mounlaiiis of the Dovretjeld in Scandinavia, where it enlivens the fiiy-itivi^ summer with its short but a;'reeable notes, soundin«^ doubly sweet from the tri'eless wastes in which they are heard. It invariably builds its nest, which it lines with feathers and down, in the lissures of mountain rocks or under larye stones, and tin- entrance is generally so narrow as merely to allow the parent birds to pass. The remarkaiily dense winter phinia<^eof the snow-buntiny especially (jiialilies it tor a northern residence, and when in captivity it will rather bear the severest cold than even a nu)derate de^ret; of warmth. In its breedinjj;'-phices it lives almost exidusively oil insects, particularly e;iiats: during- the winter it feeds on all sorts of seeds, and then famine frequently coini»els it to wander to a less rij^'oroiis climate. The Lapland buntiny {(\ntri!i-i». likewise iiii iiiliabitaiit of the hiylier latitudes, where it is frequently seen in the barren <^-r()unJs .mkI tundras. Both these birds iire distin<^'uished by the very ioiij^'" claw of their hind tt)C, a structure which oiuibles them to run about with ease upon the S)io\v. A:uon<^ the raptorial birds of the i\rctie regions, the sea- eagle {H'llivfnti aJhicilln) lu)lds a conspicuous ranlc. At his approach the gull and the auk c<>nceal themselves in the lissures of the rocks, but are frequently dragged inrth by their relentless enemy. The divers are, according to Wah- lengren, more imperilled from his attacks than those sca- l>irds v.hich do not plunge, for the l.dter rise into the air as soon as their piercing eye espies the universally dreaded tyrant, and thus escape; Avhile the fonuer, blindly trusting to the element in Avuich the}' 1- Id'cn shii'ldi'il with lhi'<'('lold brass — and Vft tlic poet Knew bill llie sunny ]\[i'(literraueau, with its trpid Hoods and sinilinn' shores : how, thi»Ti, would he have found words ttx'.xprcss his asloiiisliincnt a,t Ihe intrepid seamen who, lo ojieii new vistas III science or ihmv roads to eomineree, lirst veutuved to face tlie unknown lerrors of llu! Arctic main -^ 111 every ])art of tlu^ ocean IIh; in;;riner has tii ijfuard against (lie perils of hidden shoals and snnlcen cliif-, but llie high northern waters are doubly and Irelily dangerous ; for here, besides thos(> vocks which I'.re llrnil y I'l loicd Id Die i^roiind, \. 1. !< ;!() TIIK roLAIJ \V(H!I.I). 11i('i-<' iirc olliors wliicli, freely floniiny- ;i1)<»nl, tlironleii to f'viis] ) is vessel to pieces, or to force it along with them in hi-'lpiv o.i boiidaye. Tlie Arctic navij^^itors have given various names to these movable shoals, which are the cause of so much tlehiy and (liinger. They arc iccheroy. when Ihey tower to a considerable lieight above the waters, and iccjlehh when they liavo a vast horizontal extension. Ajh>c is a detached portion of a field ; 'pack-i('c, a large area of iioes or snniller fragments closely driven together so as to oppose a. firm barrier to the progress of a ship ; and df'ift-ice, loose ice in motion, but not so lirmly l)nclved !!s to prevent a vessel from making her way through its yielding masses. The large icefields which the winder encounters in Baffin's Bay, or on the seas between S[)itzbergen and Greeidaiid, con- stitute one of the marvels of the deej). There is a solemn grandeur in the slow miijestic motion with which they are di'iftcd by the currents to the south ; and their enormous masses, as mile after mile conies floating by, impress the spectator with the idea, of a boundless extent and an irre- sistible power. But, vast and mighty as they are, they are unable to withstand the elements combined for their destruc- tion, and their apparently triumphal march leads them only to their ruin. When they first descend from their northern strongholtls, the ice of which they are comi>osed is of the avenige thickness of from ten to fifteen feet, and their stn'face is sometimes toler- ably smooth iind even, but in general it is covered with num- iK'rless iceblocks or hummocks i)iled ni)Oh each other in wild confusion to a height of forty (tr fifty feet, the result of rt'peated collisions before flakes and floes were soldered into fields. Before the end of June they are covered ""vith snow, sometimes six feet deep, which, melting during t" .0 summer, forms small ponds or lakes upon their surface. Not seldom icefields are whirled about in rotatory motion, whicli causes their circumference to gyrate a-, ith a velocity of several miles i)er hour. When a field thus swee[)ing through the Avaters comes into collision Avith nnother which may possibly be revolving Avith equal rapidity in iin opposite (lir»>ction — when masses nut seldom twenty or thirty miles in i('r:F]i;i!'is and k kfihij*.^. 31 i \Yon\on to th them in OS to those doliiy and »nsi(U'riiblo avo a vast . of a field ; iits closely 0 proj^i'oss t so iirmlj .y through in BatTlii's iland, con- a solemn h they are enormous ipress the id an irre- >, they are ir (lestruc- theui only onghohls, thickness moH toler- ^'itli nnni- lov in wild result of ered into ith snow, summer, y motion, elocity of 4" Ihrongh lith nniy o|>|»osil(' y' miles in ili;iiii''f''i'. iind each w.'iL;'hing ni iny milliuns of Ions, clash to^cllii r, imagination can hardly conceive a more ai)palling stciH'. Till' whalers at all times recjiiire unremitting vigilance to secui'f their safety, but scarcely in any situation so nnichas wlnn navigating amidst these fields, which are more particu- liirly dangerous in foggy weather, as their motions cannot then lii'distinetly observed. No wonder that since the establishment of the (islii'ry numbers of vessels have been crushed to pieces hi'twcen two fields in motion, for the strongest ship ever hiiilt must needs bo utterly unable to resist their power. Some have been uplifted and thrown upon the ice ; some have had their hulls cbmi)letely torn open ; and others have been overrun l)y tht! ice, and buried beneath the fragments piled n]Min their wreck. Tiie icebergs, which, as their name indicates, rise above tlio water to a much more considerable height than the ice- li"lds, have a very different origin, as they are not formed in tlic sea itself, but by the glaciers of the northern highlands. As (.ur rivers are continually pouring their streams into the ocean, so many of the glaciers or ice-rivers of th«^ Arctic zone, descending to the water-edge, are slowly but constantly forcing themselves fiu'tlu-r and further into the sea. In the sunnner season, when the ice is particuhirly fragile, the forct' of cohesion is often overcome by the weight of the pro- digious masses that overhang the sea or have been under- mined by its waters; and in the winter, when the air is probably 40" or oU° below zero and the sea from 2.S'' to -30° above, the unequal expansion of those parts of the mass exposed to so great a ditferenco of temperature cannot fail to produce the separation of large portions. Most of these swimming glacier- fragments, or icebergs, which are met with by the whaler in the Northern Atlantic, are formed on the mountainous west coast of (trooidand by the large glaciers wdiich discharge themselves into the fiords from Smith's 8t)und to Disco lJ;iy,as lu're tlie sea is sutticiently deep to iluat them away, in s]>ite of the enormous magnitude Oiey frequently attain. As tlu'y drift along down Baffin's llayand Havis's Strait, they not solihun run aground oo some slialloAV sliore, where, bidding defiance t j the short sunnner, tlii'v tVi'iiueiitlv remain for niiinv a var. 1 1 *' *' » M' S2 TIIK r()l,.\I{ \V(il!l.l>. Dr. ITiivcs inciisnrcd ivii iininoiiso ieobcv^' which Imd siriuidod off' the litth; hurhour of Tossuissiik to the iiortli «if M(.'lville Bay. The square wall whicli faced towards his base of uieiisuremeut was ;}lo feet hi^^h and a fraction over three (jiiarters of a, inil<' long'. JJeiny almost squaro-sided above the sea, the same shape must have extended beneath it ; and since, l>y measurements made two days bi'foi'o Hayes had discovered that fn'sh-water ice tloatinn; in salt water has above the surface to Ix'low it the proportion of oui' to seven, this crystallised mountain must have y;oiie ayronnd in a depth of nearly half-a- mile. A rude estimate of its si/e, made on the spot, j^-aveiii cid)ic-'l contents about 27,OUO millions of feet, and in weight something like 2,(100 millions of tons ! Captain Ross in his first voyage mentions another ot these wrecked bergs, which was foj.nd to be 1,1(59 yards long, ;),(;8!) yards broatl, and ol feet high above the level of the sea. It was aground in 01 fathoms, and its weight was estimated by an officer of the ' Ahwander ' at l,21)2,:{!)7,r;7;i tons. On ascending the flat top of this iceberg it was found occupieil by ahugh white l)ear, who, justly deeming 'discretion the best part of valour,' sprang into the sea before he could be fired at. The vast dimensions of the icebergs ai)]>ear less astonisli- ing when we consider that many of the glaciers or ice-rivers from which they are dislodged are equal in size or volume U< the largest streams of continental Europe. Thus one of the eight glaciers existing in the district ef (^menak in Lireenland is no less than an English mile broad, and forms an ice-wall rising IGO feet above the sea. Further to the north, INFelville Bay and Whale Sound are the seat of vast ice-rivers. Here Tyndall glacier forms a coast line of ice over two miles long, ahiiotst burying its face in the sea, ami carrying the eye along a broad and winding valley, up stejis of ice of giant height, until at length the slope loses itself in the unknown ice-desert beyond. But grand above all is the magnificent Hunilxddt glacier, which, connecting Greenland and Washington Land, forms a solid glassy wall 800 feet above the water-level, with an unknown depth below it, while its curved face extends full sixty miles in length from Ca[it' Agassi/ to l'a[)e Forbes. In the temperate /.one it would be one of the mightiest rivers of the earth ; here, in the IVo/en soli- if'FcnRiJ*;.-; i.v Mirtvicirr srxsm.vi:. »1 wliidi liiid the iiortli of mis his base 111 over three led iibovG the t; iiiulsinec, (I (liscover('(l ethe snrfiicc crystallised early half-a- spof., yaveiii 1(1 ill weight i another (it ) yards loiii;', ol of the sea. IS estimutcil ''^ tons. On md occnpie(l ■tion the best d bo fired at. :'ss astonisli- or iee-riveis »r Vdlunie te le district of I mile broad, a. Fnrthcr e the seat of ist line ot'i(T Ihe sea, and ey, np ste].s Dses itself in •ve all is tin' X Greenland all :{00 feet low it, Avliili- from Cafic Vduld be oin' frozen soli- tmlfs of tlie north, it slowly drops its vast fraiial form is that of a high vertical wall, gradually sloping down to the opposite side, which is very low ; but frecjuently tlifv (.'xhibit the most fantastic shapes, particularly after they have been a long time exposfnl to the C(-»rroding power of th(> waves or of Wiirm rains pelting them from above. A number of icebergs floating in the sea is one of tlu^ most magniticent spectacles of nature; but the wonderful lii'iiuty of these crystal cliffs never appears to greater advan- tage than when clothed by the midnight sun with all the sideiidid colours of twilight. 'Tlie bergs,' says Dr. Hayes, describing one of theS(L' on- clianting nights, ' had wholly lost their chilly as[)ect, and, glittering in the blaze of the brilliant heavens, seemed in the distance like masses of burnished metal or solid flame. Nearer at hand they were huge blocks of Parian niarlde inlaid with mammoth gems of pearl and opal. One in particular exhibited the perfection of the grand. Its form was not unlike that of the Colosseum, and it lay so far away that half its height was buried beneath the line of blood-red waters. The sun, slowly rolling along the horizon, passed behind it, and it seemed as if the old Roman ruins had suddenly taken fiiv. In the shadow of the bergs the water was a rich green, and nothing could be more soft and tender than the o-radatioiis of colour mad(i by the sea shoaling on th(> slo[)ing tongue of a berg clost' beside us. The tint increased in intensity where the ice ovirhung the water, and a. dee[» cavern near by ex- hibited the solid colour of tln^ malaidiite mingled with the transparency of the emerald, while in strange contrast a lii'oad streak of cobalt blue ran diagonally through its body. Tlie liewitching character of the scene was heightened by a tli'iiis:i)id little cascades which leaped into the sea from these M ' , » i S4 Tim POLAR WORI-I), floiitin;^ masses, the wator beiii^' (liscliiir<:,'0(l from liikrs ol meltod snow ami ice which reposed in (juietiidc! far up in tlic vaUeys separatinjf the hi-old. In the nii^'lit the icebeijjfs arc readily distinguished even at a distance by their natural ettulgence, and in foggy weather by a peculiar blackness in the atmospliere. As they are net unfrequently drifted by the Greenland Stream considerably te the south of Newfoundland, sometimes even as far as the for- tieth or thirty-ninth degree of latitude (May 18 tl , June 18 12). ships sailing through the north-western Atlantic require to be always on their guard against them. The ill-fatj'd 'Presi- dent,' one of our first ocean-steamers, which was lost on its way to New York, without leaving a trace behind, is supposed to have been sunk by a collision with an iceberg, and no doubt manv a gallant bark has either foundered in the niuht, or been hurU'd by the storm against these floating rocks. But, though often dangerous neighbours, the bergs occa- sionally prove useful auxiliaries to the mariner. From their greater bulk lying below the water-line, they ai-e either drifted alorg by the under-current against the wind, or from their vast dimensions are not perceptibly influenced even liy the strongest gal<% but, on the contrary, have the ai)pearance of moving to windward, because every other kind of ice is drifted rapidly past them. Thus, in strong adverse winds, ilieir broad masses, fronting the storm like bulwarks, n(4 seldom afford protection to ships mooring under their lee. Anchoring to a berg is, however, not always unattended with danger, particularly wh(>n the sum;ner is far advanced, <^r in a lower latitude, as all ice becomes i'xceediiigly fragile when acted on by tlie susi oi- by a fejiiperate atmos[)here. Til herg ruins T AN('IIOI{|\(i To iCIir.KTJfiS. om lalvcs of iir up in tile per snrracc. m detacluMl, noise, wliilc iroufrli their )y Di'. Kiiiic •vor a ^Tciit ' part of its 1" great rc- [ rubies, and nished even i^gy woatlici they are not isiderably t(i ,r as thefor- June 181.21 c require to iit^Hl ' Presi- lost on its is supposed 2vg, and no I the night, ^ rocks. 3ergs ocon- Froni their are eitlicr nd, or from •ed even l)v iil)pearance iiid of ice prse winds, warks, not leir lee. uiattended ailvanoed, o-ly friig-ilc ■<[»here. Thi' blow (if ill! iixethen soinct iiiies sulHcrs to rend an iee- herg asunder, and to bury tht^ eareless »eauian beneath its ruins, or to hurl him into the yawning chasm. Thus Scorcsby rel...tes the adventui-e of two saih>rs who weri' attempting to lix an anchor to a berg. Tliey began to iiew a hide into tlie ice, but scare ly had the first blow been strindc, when suddeidy the imm.'use mass split from tup to l)(ittoiii and ftdl asunder, the two halves falling in contrary directions with a pi'odigious crasi, One of the' sailors, who was jtossessed of great presence of mind, immediately scaled tlie huge IVagiii 'ut on which lie was standing, and remained rocking to and fro on its summit until its ecjnilibrium was restored ; but his companion, falling between the masses, would must likely have been crushed to pieces if the curivnt caused by their motion had n(»t swept him within reach of the boat that was waiting for them. Frequently large pieces detaidi themselves spontaneously/ from an iceljcrg and fall into the sea with a tremendous noise. Wiien this circumstance, called 'calving,' takes place, the iceberg loses its equilibrium, sometimes turns on one side, and is occasionally inverted. Dr. Hayes witnessed the criimbling of an immense berg, resembling in its general appearance the British House ot Parliament. First one lofty tower came tundjling into the water, starting from its surface an immense flock of gulls ; then anoDier followed ; and at length, after five hours of roll- ing aud crashing, there remained of this splendid mass of con- gelation not a fragment that rose fifty fV'ct above the water. One of the most rennirkable phenomena, of tlu^ Fcdar .Sea, is the ice-blink, or reflection of the ice against the sky. A stripe of light, similar to the early dawn of nunning, but without its redness, appears above the horizon, and traces a fonij)lete aerial map of the ice to a distance of nuiny miles liexond the ordinary reach of vision. To the exi)eritMH-ed navigator the 'blink' is frt'quently of the greatest use, as it not only points out the viciuiry (»f the drift-ice, but indicates its natuiv, whether compact or loose, continuous or open. Thus Scoresby relates that on the 7tli of June, bs21, he saw so distinct an ice-blink, that as far as twenty or tliirty miles all round t lie hori/.ou hi' was able to as<'er- I) 2 f i ,ii > l< m Till", I'oI.Ai; \\(>I!I,I). iiiin ili(( fii^nirc niid j)V«il)iiljI(' extent <•(' encli ieclield. Tlie liiicked ice was (listiii<,'nislie(l IVdiii llie liivep \)hu\ strijie or patcli. \>y this means ho was enahled to (ind his way out of the vast masses of ice in whitdi h(> had heen detiiinod for sovoral days, and to pnlsive power of the individual Mocks-', is likewise favour- ahh' to the Arctic pavin';it<»r. Tlu^ jieriietunl diyli^^-ht of summer is anotlier advantai^v ; l)ut unfortunately the nun is t' (» ofien veile(l hy de)ise mists which frequently ohscuro the air for weeks together, iy ;i iViitcr-liiiu' or •ipo or patcli. ut of tilt; vast (1 for several aim woatlior, in a imitnal ewise favour- 1 diylii^lit of 'ly the sun is y (»I)scure tlio These foeriiiioiis, irits ; and ;is liieli even iil if, iist. WJieu for instan('(\ striuifjer to •o'.u ft belief ills (listaui-c I as the COH- L'd as similur snow about i»roiich of easterly winds. They result from the unequal density of ditlereiit layers of iiir which by a series oi' successive refractions |H'o- duce inverted or eular^'ed or distorted iniai^'es of objects [•iaced below or at flu.' verye of the hori/.on. Ice, land, shijis, or boats, thus shown out of their trut.' jiosition or in an altered form, ar.' said to htoni. The lower parts of loominii' ohjects ai'e sometimes a[ti)arently connected with the hori/oii; at other times they seem to be (juitt; lifted into the air. avoid s[)aee beintroiiy impeiot closo rxccpt when at rest, was lull} i-xpericnccil hy Dr. llayc'S dnriiin- Ids wintering- :tt Port Foulko; for at all times, even Avheii tlie tcinporatuic t)f the air wiis below the freezinpf- point of mercury, la; could hear from the deck of his sclatoner Iho roar of the beatin same protection. JJut th(> constant motion of the Polar sea, wherever it expands to a considerable breadth, would be insutficieid to prevent its total con^'elation, if it were not assisted by f)ther ])liysical causes. A ma<^'niticent system of currents is con- tinually dis[)lacinn' the waters of the ocean, and forcin;^' the warm Hoods of the troi)ical re<;'ions to wander to the Pole. while the cold streams of the fri^'id /one are as constantly mi^'ratin<4' towards the ecpiator. Thus we set> the (iuH Stream llowini>' through the broad gateway east of Spit/.- Iier;4en, and forciii",'' out a return curixnt of cold water toth.; west of S[>itzl)er^'en, and throu«;'li Davis's Strait. The com]»aratively warm floods Avhich, in consequence of this i^reat law of circulation, come pourinjjf into the Arctic seas naturally require som(> tinu' before they are sulti- ciently chilled to be converted into ice; and as sea-water has Us maximum of density, or, in other words, is heaviest, ii few deo'vi'cs above the freezin<>--poiiit of water, and then luicessarily sinks, the whole depth of the sea must of course be cooled down to that tcmpei'ature before free/iuij;' can idliv [ilace. [re beinn- a l.iad conductor of lu'at, likewise hniil Hess probii floes, to flu latiou T ai^'cu'. 4 KXTKNT or l( K. 80 I riMiiciisfcr V il HtroilLf •ere n thin re ilic tnlt's is eoiiliiiu- covcrs till' i'il (lot's not •(•(1 by Dr. it nil times, !ie freeziiinf- is schooner inscs t' cri' 1111(1 a, 1,1111 , more timii ven ill tln' arry Arelii- i-rs will not ir when iiii winds fVoiii vherever it ufficient to d by other its is coii- orciiiy tlir \> the Pole. e<)nstaiitl\ the (iiiit of S]»it/- ater to tlu; equonce of the Arctie are siitti- -water has heaviest, a and tlu'ii of course e/iiio- can I, likt'wiM' limits tlie process of ron^'dation ; for afttn* iittaiiiiii<.ja thick- ness of ti-n or lifteeii feel, its ;j;rowth is very slow, and |probal;ly I'Ven ceases alto^'ether; for when floating lields, or tloes, are found of a j^jreater tliieUneas, this increase is duo to tiie snow that falls upon their surface, or to the ai'cumii- lation of hummocks caused by their collision. Tlins, by the combined intlueiice of these various physical a^'cncies, bounds have been set to the eonj^felatioii of the I'olar waters. Were it otherwise the Arctic lands would liave been mere uninhabitable wastes ; for the existence (tf tlie seals, the walrus, and the whale depends upitii their fiiidini;' some open water at every season of the year; and deprived of this resource, all the Es()uimaux, whose various tiilies friii<^e the coasts in the hi<,'hest latitudes hitherto discovered, would perish in a. sin<,do winter. rf the Arctic j,'laciers did not dischar^^-e their bergs into the sea, or if no currents conveyed the ico-Hoes of the north into loAver latitudes, ice would be constantly accumulating in the Polar wtn-ld, and, destrt>ying the balance of nature, Would ultimately endanger the existence of man over the whole surface of the "'lobe. ^j^.-M' iiiK HN;i\(,i: uiiAi.i:. It I v.'iiAi.i:.;s AMuMi iiiaii;ii(j,,i. CHAPTER [V. AROTIO MARINE ANIMALS. I'Dimluiisniss f>(' the Arctic Seas— The (iniiilMi il Wli.ilc— The Fin Wh.ilcs - TJH! Niifwliil — Till' liciiif,'!, or Wliito Dolphin Tiiu lllnck Doljiliin Iliswlml,- ^ilc M.issacru on tiio Fiu-roc Isliuuls— Tho Ore or Uriinipiis 'I'lic S.als Tli. Walrus — Its ai'uic Snu'il History of a yoiiii;; Walrus raruntal AtU'cliun— Tin I'olar Jiwir -llis Saf,Mi,'it}-— lliliLrnatiuu of the .Sho-Lit.'iir -Sea JJinls. rilllK vast nuiltitiules of uiiiiiuited beiiiys wliioh people tin- 1- Poliir seas tbrm a veniiU-kable contrast to the nakedness of 1 heir bleak a iid desolate shores. The eitlder snrfaee-waters ahnost per[ietir.illy exposed to a chilly air, and fr<'(|iiently covered, even iu siiinnier, 'Aith Uoatini^' iee, are indeed iiii- favonrable to the development of or^^anic life ; but this adverse intlnenco is nje)ditied by the higher teniperatnre which con- stantly [»revails at a j^'reater de[)tli ; for, contrary to what takes place in the equatorial seas, we hnd in the I'olar oceiiii an increase of temperature from the sin-faci' downwards, in conseijuence of the warmer undi-r-ciu-rents, llowin^- from tin- south northwards, and jtassiny beneath the cold waters «)f Uic t:.uperlicial Ai\Tic cLUTVut. 1 i ^•T I *.••>?:■<. lill Ili>\\l|nl,- •|ir S.als Tllr Atl'cctioii — Tlii' iii'ils. poo|)k' till' Uiikc'diii'ss •f'iit'o-watois tr('<)Uoiitlv iutlt't'd iiii- tliis adverse which coii- I'v to whiit 'ohir oeoiiii n I wards, in VJ: tVolll thr aler.s of Ihi' ( ' I'ot.AU IIK.VII.S AND SI;AI.«. J LIKK I\ TiFM AIUTK; SKA. 41 .i i Thus tlie sovL'rity of the Polar winter reiuiiiiis untelt at a ^irater depth oi" the sea, when^ myriads of creatures find a secure retreat ag'uinst the frost, and whence they enierL;-e dariii;,'' the lon<^ snnMner''s day, either to lint' tlie shores or In ;isccii,l nie broad riv 'rs of tlie Arctic world. ISeiween the jiiriillcls of 7 J." and 80° Scoresby observed that the cttlour ul" tlie (■Ireerdand sea varies from the purest iiltrimariiie to ,,|i\..ui( '-11, and from crystalline transparency to striking' ojki- '•ity — ap[tearances which are not transitory, but pi'rmaiienl. Tills ^rcen semi-opaquo water, whose position varies with the ciirreiits, often foriiin<;" isolated stripes, and soinetiines sj)read- iii^' over two or t'lree de<^rees of latitude, mainly owes its sin- gular as[)ect to small medusa3 and uudibraiichiate molluscs. It is calculated to form one-fourth part of the surface of the sea between thi the coast of Greenland, where the waters are so ex- ec aiuiily clear that the bottom and every object iipon it are [daiuly visible even at a depth of eighty fathoms, the ground is seen covered with gigantic tangles, which together with the animal world, circulating among their fronds, remind the spectator of the coral-reefs of the tropical ocean. Nul- lipores, mussels, alcyouians, sertularians, ascidians, and a variety of other sessile animals, incrust every stone or fill every hollow or crevice of the rocky ground. A dead seal or tish thrown into the sea is soon converted into a skeleton l>y the myriads of small crustaceans which infest these northei'ii waters, and, like the ants in the equatorial forests, perform the jart of scavengers of the deep. Thus we find an exuberance of life, in its smaller and smallest forms, j)eopling the Arctic waters, and aftording nourishment to a variety of strange and bulky creatures — letaceaiis, walruses, and seals — which annually attract thou- sands of adventurous seamen to the Icy ocean. Oi tlu'se sea-mammalians, the most important to civilised man is undoubtedly the Greenland whale {ruilaudiniixticrliis), >rds of iS[»itzbergen and Danish Greenland; then Davis's Straits became the M 42 Till-: roi.AR woiiij). favourito fisliin<,^-grouii(ls ; and more rocciitly tlio inlets and various cliaunels to the east of Biiffiu's Bay liavo been in- vaded ; while, on the opposite side of America, several hundreds of whalers penetrate every year throiif,^h Beriii'.','s Straits into the ley sea beyond, where previously they lived and niulti[)]ied, unmolested except by the Esquimaux. More fortunate than the smooth-back, the rorquals or fin- whales {Bdlwnoptera hoops, musculus, 2)Jtl/tf defence, mark of awarded, lie ^rctic mproperly o-. Wheli es intD a to twenty ad, and a jyond oO" irticulurlv ru eei near the estuaries of the lar^^^e SihL'ritm and Norih American rivers, whi'di it often ascends to a considerable distance in :iiiisuit of the salmon. A troop of beln<;-as diviny ont of the (lark waves of the Arctic sea, is said toatt'ord a mai^'nifi- ceiit spectacle. Their white colunr appears da/zlin^', from tlie cniilrast of the sombre backj^ronnd, as they dart about with iirrow-iike velocity. The black dol[)hin [Glohicephabis ijUJ/icepfi) is likewise very cuinnion in the Arctic seas, both beyond Berin^^-'s Straits ;iiii| between Greenland and 8pitzber<^en, whence it frequently iiiiik''s excursions to the south. It o-rows to the length of twenly-fonr feet, and is about ten feet in circumference. The skin, like that of the dolphin tribe in yvneral, is smooth, resembling' oiled silk ; the colour a bluish black on the hack, and y-enerally whitish on the belly; the blubber is three or four inches thick. The iull-n'i'own have "-enerallv twentv-two or twenty-four teetii in each jaw; and when the mouth is shut, the teeth lock between one another, like the teeth of a trap. The ilnrsul iin is about fifteen inches high, the tail five feet broad, the [lectoral tins are as many, h)nyand comparatively narrow ; so thai, armed with such excellent paddles, tin; black dolphin is inferior to none of his relatives in swiftness. Of an einiiieMtly social disposition, these doli>hins sometimes con- M-iouate in herds of many hundreds, under the p'uidance of several old experienced males, whom the rest follow like a lldck of sheep — a property from which tin,' animal is called ill Shetland the ' ca'ino- whale.' No cetacean strands more i're(juently than the black dolphin, and occasionally large herds have been driven on the shores of Iceland, Norway, and the Orkney, Shetland, and Faeroe islands, where their capture is hailed as a godsend. The intelligence that a shoal of ca'ing whales or grinds has been seen approaching ilie c(jast, creates great excitement among the otherwise [ihlegiiiatic inhabitants of the Faei'oe islands. The whole neighbourhood, old and young, is instantly in motion, and seen numei'ons boats shoot otf from shore to intercept the retreat of the dolphins. Slowly and steadily they are driven towards the coast ; the phalanx of their enemies draws closer and rjnv.r tnuoihcr ; terrified bv stones and blows, thev run ( \ 4i TIIK I'OLAK WOULD. jisliore, and lie nriispiii^^ as the flood recedes. Then be<,nns the work of death, aiiiid the loud shouts of the executu»iiers and the furious s^dashin^'s of the victims. In this niiiinier more than 800 ^^rindu were massacred on August l(i, 177(): and durinj,' the four summer months tliat Lannhye sojourncil on th(! islands in I817, (!2:> were driven on shore, and served ,oovered with larg(> p«dlneid whiskers orbristles; the iie(dv' is tliicdc and short; tin; naked grey or red-brown skill hangs loosely on the ponderons and elongated trnnk ; and ilie short feet terminate in broad Hn-like paddles, resend)ling jiirge ill-fiishioned flaps of leather. Its mov(Mnents on hind lire extremely slow and awkward, resembling tliose (»f a hnge eiiterpilhir; bnt in the water it has all the aetivity of the seals, or even surpasses them in speed. Oregarions, like the seals and many of the dolphins, the walruses love to lie on the ice or on the sand-banks, closely huddled together. On the spot where a walrus lands, others iire sure to follow; and when the first eomers block the shore, those which arrive later, instead of landing on a free spot further on, prefer giving their friends who are in (he way a gentle push with their tusks, so as to induce them to make room. Timorous and almost helpless on land, where, in spite o( its formidable tnsks, it falls an easy prey to the attacks of iiiiiu, the walrus evinces a greater degree of courage in the wiitor, where it is able to make a better nse of the strength and Aveapons bestowed upon it by nature. Miiny instances are known where walruses, which never attack but Avhen provoked, have turned upon their assailants, or have even assembled from a distance to assist a wounded comrade. Like the seals, the walrus is easily tamed, and of a most affectionate temper. This was shown in a remarkable man- ner by a young walrus brought alive from Archang(d to St. Petersburg in 1829. Its keeper, Madame Demiebecq, having tended it with the greatest care, the grateful animal expi-essed its pli'asure whenever she came near it by an affectionate grunt. It not onl^ followed her with its eyes, but was never JKippier than when allowed to lay its head in her lap. The tenderness was reciprocal, and Madam ' Dennebecq used to talk of her walrus with the same warmth of affection as if it luiil been a pot lap-dog. That parental love should be highly d('vel(»ped in animahj thus susceptible of friendship msiy easily be imagined. Mr. Laiiiont, an English gentleman whom th(> love of sport led a few years since to Sp.itzbergen, relates the case of a wounded Wcdriis who held a vory young calf under her I'ight arm. WhriH'ViT the har[Mi()u was r>ised against it, the nidther ,11 ( ^ ; 11 . ' f. 40 TIIK POLAR WOHIJ). carefullj sliiuUlcd it witli licr own \hu\\. T1i(> coniiteiiiiiict^ of this i»o(»r animal was iicviT to bo for^'ottcii : that of tlif calf t'xpivssive of ahject terror, and yet of such a boundless confidence in its mother's jtower of iirotc.'ctinj,' it, as it swam alon^' luider her Aviny, and the old cow's face slu>win<,' such reckless uefianco ibr all that could be done to herself, and yet such terrible anxiety as to the safety of her calf. This parental affection is shamefully misused by man, for it is ii conunon artifice of the walrus hunters to catcli a younn animal and make it yrunt, in order to attract a lierd. The walrus is confined to the coasts of the Arctic regions, unless when drift-ice, or some other accident, carries it awiiy into the open sea. Its chief resorts are Spit/berf^^en, Novaj;i Zendya, North (jlreenland, the shores of Hudson's and Batfin's Bays ; and on the opposite side of the Polar ocean, tlic coasts of Bering's Sea, and to the north of Bering's Straits the American and Asiatic shores from I'oint Barrow to Ca]i(' North. It has nowhere been found on the coasts of Siberia, from the mouth of the Jenisei to the last-mentioned pro- montory, and on tliose of America from Point Barrow to Lancaster Sound ; so that it inhabits two distinct reujions, separated from each other by vast extents of coast. Its food seems to consist principally of marine plants and shell-fisli, though Scoresby relates that he found the remains of fishes. or even of seals, in its stomach. As the Polar bear is frequently found above a hundn.'d miles from the nearest land, upon loose ice steadily driftin;jf into the sea, it seems but fair to assi<4'n him a place amotitf the nuiiine animals of the Arctic zone. He hunts by scent, and is constantly runnin<^ across and against the wind Avhicli prevails from the northward, so that the same instinct whidi duvets his search for prey also serves the important purpose of guiding him in the direction of the land and more solid ice. His favourite food is the seal, which he surprises crouching down with his fore paws doubled underneath, and pushing himself noiselessly forward with his hinder legs luitil within a few yards, when he spi-ings upon his victim whether iu the water or upon the ice, He can swim at the rate of thrive miles an hour, and can dive lo a considerable distance. Though \w attaidcs man when hungry, wounded, or provoked, he will not injure hitu when food more to his TITR roi,.\K lillAR 47 ounteiiiiiico that of tlip L bouiulk'ss us it swiiiu Dwiujjf such lievself, and calf. This for it is II 'h ii yonii^' crd. ;tic reyioiis, rios it awiiy ,n'ii, NovMJii and Baftiirs ocean, tin' ly's Straits •Qw to Capt' 1 of Sibcri;!, tiont'd pvd- ) Barrow to ict regions, t. Its food I shell-fisli, IS of fishes, a hundred ly driitiiii,'' ace aniou;^' s by scent, ivind whieli iuct \vhi(di nt purpose more solid surmises neatli, and linder le^s his victim vim at lilt' tiisiderabli' , wounded, lore to jiis liking is at hand. Sir Francis M'l'lintock rehitos an anecdote of II imtive of Upernavik wlio was out one dark winter's day visiting' his seal-nets. lie found a seal ontan|;-led, and whilst kiieelin<,f down over it upon the ice to <,'et it clear, he received a slap on the back — from his companion as he supposed; but II second and heavier blow made him look smartly round. lie was horror-stricken to see a pecvdiarly st, caused by tlie cniigelation of the breath. AVithin this stiange iiursejy 48 TIIK I'OLAII \VOI!l,l». sIk' produpcs licr voniii,', jukI rciMiiiiis with Hkmii hnicntli ilic snow tiiitil the iiioiitli of !>rur('li, wlirn sli(^ (MiH'r;,'('s into tlir o|K'ii iiir willi licr h\]>\ bears. As tlio tiiiic passes on, tlir lirea,tli of the family, toi^-ether witli tlie warmth exhaleil from their bodies, servos to enlar<;e the cell, s') t)ua witli their iiiei'easiiin' shelter the y<»un'^% tin- male bears do not hih"r'iate IMce tl..' females, ' "t ro;- fre 'ly abort duriun- the winter months. I , |'(,;(> ,,>r. M.;.; M-tdi'. iho snow, the bear eats enormously, and, (b'\-ei. *.' :■■■■ Mifailiniif instinct, resorts to the most nutritions diti. so ti •■ she becomes prodiyiously fat, thus layin;,' in an internal store of alimentary matter which enables her not only to support her own life, but to suckle her yonni;' duriii"- her lonir seclusion, without takini; a morsel of food. IJy an admirable provision of nature, the ytmuL;- -are of won- deil'ully small dimensions when comjiared with the i)aront ; and as their j^'rowth, as Ion;.;' as they remain eontined in their crystal nursery, is remarkably slow, they consequently nee d but littl(> food and space. The Polar bear is armed with formidable weapons, and a proportionate power to use them. His claws are two inches in len;4'th, and his canine teeth, exclusive of the part in the jaw, about an inch and a half. Thus the hoards of provi- sions which are frequently dei>osited by Arctic voyagers to provide for some future want, have no greater enemy than the Pcdar bear. 'The final cache,' says Kane, ' whicli I ndied so nuich upon, Avas entirely destroyed. It had been built, Avith extreme care, of rocks which had been assembled by very heavy labour, and adjusted with much aid often from capstan-bars as levers. The entire construction was, so far as our means permitted, most effective and re- sisting'. Yet these tigers of the ice seemed hardly to have encountered an obstacle. Not a morsel of i)emmican re- nniined, except in tlio iron cases, wdiiidi iH'ing round, with conical ends, detied both cla^'s and teeth. They had rolled and pawed thom in evei*y direction, tossing them about like footballs, although over eighty pounds in weight. An alco- hol can, strongly iron-bound, was dashed into small frag- ments, and a tin can of liipior smashed and twisted almost into a liall. Thecjnws of the beast had perforated the met:il and torn salt !iiea old nvi eur ll ig, wa'' ■ , w l',.<.;ii ir t aiPi, una had tied Nam shores as the sea water "x its youn'_ lanes of enormou; l)urgermi Arctic te sir iner ( waters, b perhaps r their wilt howling >uch abu f deration, the watei f AKCTK' r.ll!li> 40 iicatli tllr into till' 'S on, tllr 1 ex ha it'll t)iai with iiir ivasiil row is to (' likr tl;,. r iiioiitlis. ornidiislv, the nidst tilt, tllllS •li (Miabirs licr yoiiiiL;' '1 of food. V of WOll- le i)aroiif ; 'cl in their n)tly not tl HIS, anil a wo iiu'lit's rt ill flic of pvovi- voyaji'crs er eiioiiiy ' whifli It liiid uul hofii much iiiil structitMi and \v- to havt' mean rr- md, with ad rolled joiit like An alct)- all frai!'- 1 almost he iiiet:il iind torn it np as with a cliisid. Thoy wore too dainty for salt iiieilts: ;4Toiliid i-titfeo tliey had an evident rtdisli for; old nvas was a favoiiritf for some reason or other; even eur ll lir. which had ijeen reared " to taki possession " of the wa ; • , was <,'nawed down to the very statf. They had made a iet;e ir tVoiic of it; rolling our br. ad-barrels over the ice; ami, unable to mastiep^e onr heavy india-rubber (doth, tlu»y liiid tietl it lip la iiiiimao-hiable hard knots.' N'mnbtU'S of sea-birds are found breedinMiiiint;iin^ i.r Isi'isiivik 'I'lic MiiiI-imMimiis <>t' Ilrvkjiililid — Tli" 'riuiij;o-liv('v r J{''yl(li'>l! Till' I ii'cMi (ii'v-ir — 'I'ln'Sii'. kki' -('i'y~i,il I'.nU Tlir Alniiinnn^j;! - The Siirlv-liillir IJraillil'ill Jcf five 'I'lir ( iotlia l''i'.ss — Tlio Dftti I^'oss-C'r. jiiiitc— \'itr('!Mii'iii('iiltlc liiirliai'niis y\iH\t' cf Slu'ap-^licai'inn; - HcindiMi- I'l.lar lii'ai-^-liinU 'I'Ih' i;:ilii-ilii,'k N'iil.y \ i-r 'I'lir Wild Swan — Tl, Haven 'I hr Jcrlali' ai 'I'lic (iiaii! Auk or (ii'irlVui l•"l!^ll — l''i>liiii;r Sfa'^' u - Tlu' Wliito Shark Miihral Kiimduni— .-^ !![iliur I'cal —Drill W'mihI. ICELAND might as wcJlbe ciillea Firelaiuljor all its 40,0011 square miles have ori<;'inally been upheaved from the (le})lr'ii;.f Si'ii-;' II - \V.M,.l. all its -lO.rin!) Ill tliedopdiN luneasuiMltlv UclfUS of" till ad mountains I'isin;,' in Al)»ine <„'randeur ahove the distant horizon, ami the stran»j;er miyht iilmost he tempted to exclaim, with her pntriotic sons, ' roeliind is the hest land under the sun.' That it is one of the most interestin;,' throui;h its history, its in- idihitants, and ahove all its natural curiosities-- no one can douht. It has all that can please and fiiscinate the poet, the iirtist, till* ^'coloo^ist, (»r the historian; the prosaic utilitarian iiloncaccustocMMl to value a country nx'rely hy its protluctions, ininht turn with some contempt from a land without corn, without forests, without mineral riches, and covered for ahout two-thirds of its surface with botjfs, lava-wastes, and <^laciers. The curse of sterility rests (diietiv on the south (Mstern and centnil piirts of the island. Here nothinof is to he seen hut deserts of volcanic stone or immense icefiehls, the lartr^st ui \vliicli— the Klofa Jiikiill — alone extends over more than 4,000 sf|nare miles. The interior of this vast region of neve and •iliicier is totally iniknown. The highest peaks, the most drciidful volcanoes of the island, rise on the southern and south-western borders of this hitherto inaccessible waste ; the Oraefa looking down from a. height of (5, 000 ft^et uj)on all its rivals; the Skaptnr, a name of dreadful signilicaiice in tlu^ annals of Iceland ; and further on, like the advanced guards f>f this host of slumbering tires, the Katla, the Myrdal, the Eyjafjalla, and the Hecla, the most renowned, though not the most terrible, of all the volcanoes of Iceland. As the icefields of this northern island far surpass in magnitude those of the Alps, so also the lava-streams of /Etna or Vesuvius are insignificant when compared with the enormous masses of molten stone which at various periods have issued from the craters of Iceland. From Mount 8kjidflebreith, on both sides of the Lake of Thingvalla as far fis Cape Reykjanes, the traveller sees an uninterrupted lava- fii'ld moro than sixty miles long and frequeitly from twtdvf K 2 ( \ IW < ' m Tin: i'oi.\u udki.ii. to lil'ltrri hroiiil ; iind Iiivii-shviims (»t' still inorc ^'i^'iintic \>Vi)- portions exist ill imiiiy other jmrls of the islaiul, piirticii- iiirly ill till' interior, in ^,'eiieriii tliesi! lava-streiiiiiss liiiw ooolei] down into the most, fantiistic forms inia<,'inal)le. ' It is hanlly i»o.ssible,' savs Mr. Ilojhind. 'to ^^ivoaiiy idea, of tlu' general ai>|)earanee of tlnvse onee molten masses. Jlere a • '•reat cra;^' has to|)[>led over into some deep crovasse, — there a- lin<'o mass has been nitheaved ahove the fiery stream which has Hoethed and boiled around its base. Here is every sha|M' and lit^'ure that S(!nl[)tiii'e (!onMdi'siyfn or inia|j:ination pictnie, jumbled together in e;rutes.pio confusion, whilst every wheiv iii;.n'A J'ii;i I.I,, nil-: movaik ii "K n i .vndic .mihntains. myriads of horrid s|»ikes and sliarp sliapoloss irrofrnhiritit^s bristle amidst them.' ' By the eruptions of the Icelandic volcanoes many n fair meadow-laud has been converted into a stony wilderness ; biil if the subtei'ranean fires have frequently brought ruin ami desolation over the island, they have also endowed it witli •nany natural wonders. In the ' burning mountains ' of Krisuvik on the south- western coast, a whole hill-slope, with a deep narrow gor;,f(' at its foot, is covered with innumerable boiling springs and ' ' t'liiks, I'.i'^scy. mill (ILii'ic !•«,' T 1 1(1, piirticii- I'caiii!^ liiivi' iiiablo. ' It )' idea ol' the 'S. JIlTt' ;i issc, llit'iv rt'iim wlii( li cvt'ry sliii|M' tion picttiii', rvcrvNvlit'iv I'cpfuliiriHtN iiiiiy a. fiiir TiiPSS ; lull t ruin and ved it with tlie soutli- rrow sov'jt' )rin{^,s and Hot sI'HI.Nus oh' K 1,1, AM). M f'limiirnlcs, will's*' dense exlialiitions, spreading,' an intderalile sti'iii'li, issue <'iit (if the eaitli willi a liissin;^ noise und et»ni- |,|rtelv liide llie view. The Niiniar.crhoilin^nniid-eahlronsof l'e}lt solitary spots in the mn'th of the island, nil the horder of enormous lava-lields and of a \ast iinknowii uilileniess, exhil'it voleanie I'ower on a still more j^dj^antie Miile. Tiiere are no less than twelve of these seethin;; pits, 111! IIIImI with a disyiistin^' thi(d\ slini> ^^rey or lilack li(|uid, lioilin;,' or siiunierin;,' with greater or less vehemence, iitid riiiitfiny; denso volumes of ste;im strongly inipre;^-iiateil with sulphurous ;i[ases. Some sputter furiously, seatteriiijj^ their I'oiiteuts on every side, wdiilo in others the muddy smip iippcars too thick to l)(»il, and after remaining' (piiesceiil fur ald'Ut half a minute, rises up a few inches in the centre of the iiasin, endts a putt" of steam, and then subsides into its furniei' >t:ite. The diameter of the lar^'est of all the pits cannot he jess than tifteeii feet ; and it is a sort of mud Geysir, for at intervals a column of its bhudc li(piid contents, aceomitanied with a violent rush of steam, is thrown up to the hei^'ht of six or ei;^'ht feet. I'rofessor >Sartorius von Waltershausen, one of the few travellers who have \isited this reniarkahle spot, says that ti.e witches in Mdihilh could not possibly liav',' desired a more tittiny place for the prci'ai'at ion of their infernal ^'reel than the mud-caldrons of licykjahlid. Amoiit;" till' hot or boiliii;^' sprint^'s of Iceland, which in hundreds of [tlaces i^ush forth at the foot of the moiuitains, sniiie are of a gentle and even flow, and can be used for itiithin