beyed, pointed his gun at the clouds, and fired; then
the whole party awaited the result, listening intently. They heard much
more than had been expected, for the cliffs embraced several echoes,
which, being thus rudely awakened, sent the shot crashing back with
multiplied violence, to the no little surprise, as well as alarm, of the
hearers.

Still all was silent on board of the ship, and at last, coming to the
conclusion that there was no living soul there at all, the Indian,
having reloaded his gun, began to ascend the staircase, closely followed
by Cheenbuk, Oolalik, Anteek, and Aglootook--which last, being a
cautious man, was careful to bring up the rear. Nootka and Cowlik
remained on the ice to observe the end of it all--the former anxiously
curious, the latter curiously easy. For some time these two stood in
silent expectancy. Then Oolalik appeared at the top of the staircase,
and, looking down with a face in which solemn wonder had reached its
utmost limit of expression, beckoned them to come up.

Nootka obeyed with alacrity; her companion, leisurely.

What the party saw on entering the vessel was well fitted to arouse
wonder in their unsophisticated minds. Whether it was one of the
numerous discovery ships that have invaded those regions in the present
century, or a whaler which had been driven out of its course by stress
of weather or power of ice, is uncertain, for although some relics of
the expedition ultimately reached the outpost of the fur-traders,
nothing was brought away by the Eskimos which bore name or date or
writing of any kind. Although ignorant of the meaning as well as the
uses of almost everything they saw, those natives were quite
sufficiently intelligent to guess that the white man's big canoe had
been set fast in the ice the previous autumn, and laid up for the winter
in this place of safety to serve as a big igloe or hut.

Their examination of the ship was at first very slow, for they stepped
about on tiptoe as if afraid of disturbing some of the ghosts of its
former inhabitants. Then, a speculative gaze had to be turned on each
object for a few moments, followed by an inquiring glance at each other.
The deck and its accompaniments of masts rising through the canvas
roof, and ropes, and blocks, hatches, skylights, companions, etcetera,
afforded them matter for unbounded astonishment; though what they
afterwards discovered below was productive of unutterable amazement.

"Hoi!" ex