waves at a time when the want of powder gave our men reason to ap. prehend that they muft fall a prey to hunger, as they had nearly confumed those raindeer they had killed, This lucky circumftance was attended with another, equally fortunate; they found, on the fhore, the root of a fir-tree, which nearly approached to the figure of a bow.

As neceffity has ever been the mother of invention, fo they foon fashioned this root to a good bow, by the help of a knife; but ftill they wanted a ftring, and arrows. Not knowing how to procure these at prefent, they refolved upon making a couple of lances, to defend themfelves against the white bears, by far the moft ferocious of their kind, whofe attacks they had great reafon to dread.

Finding they could neither make the heads of their lances, nor of their arrows, without the help of a hammer, they contrived to form the large iron hook mentioned above into one, by heating it, and widening a hole it happened to have about its middle, with the help of one of their largest nails. This ` received the handle, and a round button at one end of the hook ferved for the face of the hammer. A large pebble supplied the place of an anvil; and a couple of raindeer's horns made the tongs. By the means of fuch tools, they made two heads of fpears; and after polishing and fharpening them on ftones, they tied them as fast as poffible with thongs made of raindeer-fkins, to fticks about the thickness of a man's arm, which they got from fome branches of trees that had been caft on shore.

Thus equipped with spears, they refolved to attack a white bear;

and after a moft dangerous encoun. ter, they killed the formidable creature, and thereby made a new fupply of provifions. The flesh of this animal they relished exceedingly, as they thought it much refembled beef in taste and flavour. The tendons they faw with much pleafure could, with little or no trouble, be divided into filaments, of what fineness they thought fit. This perhaps was the moft fortunate difcovery thefe men could have made; for, befides other advantages, which will be hereafter mentioned, they were hereby furnifhed with ftrings for their bow.

The fuccefs of our unfortunate islanders in making the spears, and the use these proved of, encouraged them to proceed, and to forge fome pieces of iron into heads of arrows of the fame fhape, though fomewhat fmaller in fize than the spears above-mentioned. Having ground and sharpened these like the former, they tied them with the finews of the white bears, to pieces of fir, to which, by the help of fine threads of the fame, they faftened feathers of fea-fowl; and thus became poffeffed of a complete bow and arrows. Their ingenuity, in this refpect, was crowned with fuccefs far beyond their expectation; for, during the time of their continuance upon the island, with thefe arrows they killed no less than two hundred and fifty raindeer, befides a great number of blue and white foxes. The flesh of thefe animals ferved them alfo for food, and their skins for cloathing, and other neceffary preservatives against the intenfe coldness of a cli mate fo near the Pole.

They killed however only ten white bears in all, and that not without

without the utmost danger; for thefe animals being prodigiously ftrong, defended themselves with aftonishing vigour and fury. The firft our men attacked defignedly; the other nine they flew in defending themfelves from their affaults: for fome of thefe creatures even ventured to enter the outer room of the hut, in order to devour them. It is true, that all the bears did not fhew (if I may be allowed the expreffion) equal intrepidity; either owing to fome being lefs preffed by hunger, or to their being by nature lefs carnivorous than the others: for fome of them which entered the hut, immediately betook them felves to flight on the firft attempt of the failors to drive them away. A repetition, however, of these ferocious attacks, threw the poor men into great terror and anxiety, as they were in almost a perpetual danger of being devoured. The three different kinds of animals above mentioned, viz. the raindeer, the blue and white foxes, and the white bears, were the only food thefe wretched mariners tafted during their continuance in this dreary abode,

We do not at once fee every refource. It is generally neceffity which quickens our invention, opening by degrees our eyes, and pointing out expedients which otherwife might never have occured to our thoughts. The truth of this obfervation our four failors experienced in various inftances. They were for fome time reduced to the neceffity of eating their meat almoft raw, and without either bread or falt; for they were quite deftitute of both. The intenseness of the cold, together with the want of proper conveniencies, prevented

them from cooking their victuals in a proper manner. There was but one tove in the hut, and that being fet up agreeably to the Ruffian tafte, was more like an oven, and confequently not well adapted for boiling any thing. Wood allo was too precious a commodity to be wafted in keeping up two fires; and the one they might have made out of their habitation, to dress their victuals, would in no way have ferved to warm them. Another reafon against their cooking in the open air, was the continual danger of an attack from the white bears. And here I must obferve, that fuppofe they had made the attempt, it would ftill have been practicable for only fome part of the year; for the cold, which in fuch a climate for fome months fcarce ever abates from the long abfence of the fun, then enlightening the oppofite hemifphere; the inconceivable quantity of snow, which is continually falling through the greatest part of the winter; together with the almoft inceffant rains at certain feafons; all these were infurmountable obftacles to that expedient.

To remedy therefore, in fome degree, the hardship of eating their meat half raw, they bethought themselves of drying fome of their provifion during the fummer, in the open air, and afterwards of. hanging it up in the upper part of the hut, which, as I mentioned before, was continually filled with fmoke down to the windows: it was thus dried thoroughly by the help of that fmoke. This meat, fo prepared, they used for bread, and it made them relish their other flesh the better, as they could only half drefs it. Finding this experi

ment

ment answer in every respect their withes, they continued to practife it during the whole time of their confinement upon the island, and always kept up by that means a fufficient stock of provifions. Water they had in fummer from fmall rivulets that fell from the rocks; and in winter, from the fnow and ice thawed: this was of course their only beverage; and their fmall kettle was the only veffel they could make use of for this and other purposes.

It is well known, that fea-faring people are extremely fubject to the fcurvy and it has been obferved, that this disease increases in proportion as we approach the Poles; which must be attributed either to the exceffive cold, or to fome other caufe yet unknown. However that may be, our mariners, feeing themfelves quite deftitute of every means of cure, in cafe they should be attacked with fo fatal a diforder, judged it expedient not to neglect any regimen generally adopted as a prefervative against this impending evil. Iwan Himkof, one of their number, who had feveral times wintered on the coaft of WeftSpitzbergen, advised his unfortunate companions to fwallow raw and frozen meat, broken into fmall bits; to drink the blood of raindeer warm, as it flowed from their veins immediately after killing them; to ufe as much exercife as poftible; and lastly, to eat fcurvygrafs (Cochlearia), which grows on the island, though not in great plenty.

I leave the faculty to determine whether raw frozen fleih, or warm raindeer blood, be proper antidotes to the distemper; but exercife and the ufe of fcurvy-grafs have always

been recommended to perfons of a fcorbutic tendency, whether actually afflicted with the diforder or not. Be this as it may, experience at least seems to have proved these remedies to be effectual; for three of the failors, who pursued the above method, continued totally free from all taint of the disease. The fourth, Theodore Weregin, on the contrary, who was naturally indolent, averfe to drinking the raindeer blood, and unwilling to leave the hut when he could poffibly avoid it, was, foon after their arrival on the inland, feized with the fcurvy, which afterwards became fo bad, that he passed almoft fix years under the greatest fufferings: in the latter part of that time, he became fo weak that he could no longer fit erect, nor even raise his hand to his mouth; fo that his humane companions were obliged to feed and tend him, like a new-born infant, to the hour of his death.

I have mentioned above, that our failors brought a fmall bag of flour with them to the island. Of this they had confumed about one half with their meat; the remainder they employed in a different manner, equally useful. They foon faw the neceffity of keeping up a continual fire in fo cold a climate, and found that if it fhould unfortunately go out, they had no means of lighting it again; for though they had a fteel and flints, yet they wanted both match and tinder.

In their excurfions through the ifland, they had met with a flimy loam, or a kind of clay, nearly in the middle of it. Out of this they found means to form a utenti which might ferve for a lamp; and

they

they propofed to keep it conftantly burning, with the fat of the animals they fhould kill. This was certainly the most rational scheme they could have thought of; for to be without a light, in a climate where, during winter, darkness reigns for feveral months together, would have added much to their other calamities. Having therefore fashioned a kind of lamp, they filled it with raindeer's fat, and fuck in it fome twisted linen, fhaped into a wick. But they had the mortification to find, that as foon as the fat melted, it not only foaked into the clay, but fairly run through it on all fides. The thing therefore was to devife fome means for preventing this inconveniency, not arifing from cracks, but from the fubftance of which the lamp was made being too porous. They made therefore a new one, dried it thoroughly in the air, then heated it red hot, and afterwards quenched it in their kettle, wherein they had boiled a quantity of flour down to the confiftence of thin ftarch. The lamp being thus dried and filled with melted fat, they now found, to their great joy, it did not leak. But for greater fecurity, they dipped linen rags in their pafte, and with them covered all its outfide. Succeeding in this attempt, they immediately made another lamp, for fear of an accident, that in all events they might not be deftitute of light; and when they had done fo much, they thought proper to fave the remainder of their flour for fimilar purposes.

As they had carefully collected whatever happened to be caft on fhore, to fupply them with fuel, they had found amongst the wrecks of veffels fome cordage, and a fmall

quantity of oakum (a kind of hemp ufed for calking fhips) which ferved them to make wicks for their lamp. When thefe ftores began to fail, their fhirts, and their drawers (which are worn by almoft all Ruffian peasants) were employed to make good the deficiency. By thefe means they kept their lamp burning without intermiffion, from the day they firft made it (a work they fet about foon after their arrival on the island) until that of their embarkation for their native country.

The neceffity of converting the most effential parts of their cloathing, fuch as their fhirts and drawers, to the ufe above fpecified, exposed them the more to the rigour of the climate. They alfo found themfelves in want of fhoes, boots, and other articles of drefs; and as winter was approaching, they were again obliged to have recourfe to that ingenuity which neceffity fuggefts, and which feldom fails in the trying hour of diftrefs.

They had skins of raindeer and foxes in plenty that had hitherto ferved them for bedding, and which they now thought of employing in fome more effential fervice; but the question was how to tan them. After deliberating on this subject, they took to the following method. They foaked the fkins for feveral days in fresh water, till they could pull off the hair pretty eafily; they then rubbed the wet leather with their hands till it was nearly dry, when they spread fome melted raindeer fat over it, and again rubbed it well. By this procefs the leather became foft, pliant and fupple, proper for answering every purpofe they wanted it for. Thofe kins which they defigned for furs, they

only

only foaked for one day, to prepare them for being wrought, and then proceeded in the manner beforementioned, except only that they did not remove the hair. Thus they foon provided themselves with the neceffary materials for all the parts of drefs they wanted.

But here another difficulty occurred. They had neither awls for making fhoes or boots, nor needles for fewing their garments. This want however they foon fupplied by means of the bits of iron they had occafionally collected. Out of these they made both; and by their industry even brought them to a certain degree of perfection. The making eyes to their needles gave them indeed no little trouble; but this they alfo performed with the affiftance of their knife; for having ground it to a very sharp point, and heated red hot a kind of wire forged for that purpose, they pierced a hole through one end, and by whetting and fmoothing it on ftones, brought the other to a point, and thus gave the whole needle a very tolerable form. I myself examined fome of these needles, and could find fault with nothing except the eye, which being made in the manner above-mentioned, was fo rough that it often cut the thread drawn through it; an imperfection they could not poffibly remedy, for want of better tools.

Sciffars, to cut out the fkins, were what they next had occafion for; but having none, their place they supplied with their knife and though there was neither taylor nor fhoe maker amongst them, yet they contrived to cut out their leather and furs well enough for their purpose. The finews of the bears and the raindeer, which, as I men

tioned before, they had found means to fplit, ferved them for thread; and thus provided with the neceffary implements, they proceeded to make their new cloaths.

Their fummer dress confifted of a kind of jacket and trowsers, made of fkins prepared as I have mentioned above; and in winter they wore long fur-gowns, like the Samojedes, or Laplanders, furnished with a hood, which covered their head and neck, leaving only an opening for the face. Thefe gowns were fewed close round, fo that to put them on, they were obliged to bring them over their heads like a thirt.

Excepting the uneasiness which generally accompanies an involuntary folitude, these people, having thus by their ingenuity fo far overcome their wants, might have had reason to be contended with what Providence had done for them in their diftrefsful fituation. But that melancholy reflection, to which each of these forlorn persons could not help giving way, that perhaps he might furvive his companions, and then perish for want of subsistence, or become a prey to the wild' beafts, inceffantly difturbed their minds. The mate, Alexis Himkof, more particularly fuffered, who having left a wife and three children behind, forely repined at his being feparated from them: they were, as he told me, conftantly in his mind, and the thought of ne ver more feeing them made him very unhappy.

When our four mariners had paffed nearly fix years in this difmal place, Feodor Weregin, whofe illnefs we had occafion to mention above, and who, all along had been in a languid condition, died, after