d? Down, Bowser! Down! Blawst the
dog! Ho! ho! Look there, Tompkins! I say! Here's a go!"

There was a tramping of feet, a knocking about of loose things in the
room, and a chorus of familiar voices in the adjoining passage. It is
needless to say that the party of sporting Englishmen had arrived from
Reykjavik.

"Oh-h-a! Ye-o-w!" exclaimed my room-mate, starting up, and gazing
wildly at the lively young gentleman with the dog. "Oh-o-o! How very
odd!"

The jolly sportsman looked at the apparition in perfect amazement.
Both stared at each other for a moment, as if such an extraordinary
sight had never been witnessed on either side before.

"By Jove! this is jolly!" muttered the lively gentleman, turning on
his heel and walking out; "a devilish rum-looking chap, that!"

"Oh-o-o-o!" was all my astonished room-mate said, after which he
turned over and composed himself to sleep. I had purposely refrained
from manifesting any symptoms of wakefulness, well-knowing that there
would be no farther rest that night if I once discovered myself to the
traveling party.

At a seasonable hour in the morning, however, I got up, and looked
about in search of my fellow-passengers, whom I really liked, and in
whose progress I felt a considerable interest. They were camped close
by the church, under the lee of the front door. Two canvas tents
covered what was left of them. A general wreck of equipments lay
scattered all around--broken poles, boxes, tinware, etc. It was plain
enough they had encountered incredible hardships.

[Illustration: THE ENGLISH PARTY.]

The usual greetings over, I inquired how they had enjoyed the trip
from Reykjavik. In reply they gave me a detailed and melancholy
history of their experiences. Riley's Narrative of Shipwreck, and
subsequent hardships on the coast of Africa, was nothing to it. Of the
twenty-five horses with which they left Reykjavik only thirteen were
sound of wind, and of these more than half were afflicted with raw
backs. The pack-animals, eighteen in number, were every one lame. Then
the packs were badly done up, and broke to pieces on the way.
Sometimes the ropes cut the horses' backs, and sometimes the horses
lay down on the road, and tried to travel with their feet in the air.
Incredible difficulty was experienced in making twelve miles the first
day. It rained all the time. The bread was soaked; the tea destroyed;
the sugar melted; and the Champagne baskets smashed. When the packs
we