old erroneous statements as to the nature
of the marine flora. He has drawn up for this work a full account of
the marine vegetation in the Kara Sea, which will be found further
on.

[Illustration: ELPIDIA GLACIALIS (THEEL) FROM THE KARA SEA.
Magnified three times. A. Belly. B. Back.
MANGANIFEROUS IRON-ORE FORMATIONS FROM THE KARA SEA.
Half the natural size. ]

I shall now return to the account of our passage across this sea. On
this subject my journal contains the following notes:

_August 2nd._ Still glorious weather--no ice. The _Lena_ appears to
wish to get away from the other vessels, and does not observe the
flag which was hoisted as the signal agreed upon beforehand that her
Captain should come on board, or at least bring his little vessel
within hail. The _Fraser_ was therefore sent in pursuit, and
succeeded in overtaking her towards night.

_August 3rd._ In the morning Captain Johannesen came on board the
_Vega_. I gave him orders to take on board Dr. Almquist and
Lieutenants Hovgaard and Nordquist, and go with them to Beli Ostrov,
where they should have freedom for thirty-six hours to study the
people, animals, and plants, as they pleased; the _Lena_ was then,
if possible, to pass through the Sound between the island and Yalmal
to Port Dickson, where the three other vessels should be found.
Almquist, Nordquist, and Hovgaard were already quite in order for
the excursion; they went immediately on board the _Lena_, and were
soon, thanks to the great power of the engine in proportion to the
size of the vessel, far on their way.

In the course of the day we met with very open and rotten ice, which
would only have been of use to us by its moderating effect on the
sea, if it had not been accompanied by the usual attendant of the
border of the ice, a thick fog, which however sometimes lightened.
Towards evening we came in sight of Beli Ostrov. This island, as
seen from the sea, forms a quite level plain, which rises little
above the surface of the water. The sea off the island is of an even
depth, but so shallow, that at a distance of twenty to thirty
kilometres from the shore there is only from seven to nine metres of
water. According to a communication from Captain Schwanenberg, there
is, however, a depth of three to four metres close to the north
shore. Such a state of things, that is, a uniform depth, amounting
near the shore to from four to ten metres, but afterwards increasing
only gradually and remaini