ng unchanged over very extensive areas, is
very common in the Arctic regions, and is caused by the ice-mud-work
which goes on there nearly all the year round. Another remarkable
effect of the action of the ice is that all the blocks of stone to
be found in the sea next the beach are forced up on land. The beach
itself is formed accordingly at many places, for instance at several
points in Matotschkin Sound, of a nearly continuous stone rampart
going to the sea level, while in front of it there is a quite even
sea bottom without a fragment of stone.

[Illustration: SECTION FROM THE SOUTH COAST OF MATOTSCHKIN SOUND.
Showing the origin of Stone-ramparts at the beach. ]

_August 4th._ In the morning a gentle heaving indicated that the sea
was again free of ice, at least over a considerable space to
windward. Yesterday the salinity in the water was already diminished
and the amount of clay increased; now the water after being filtered
is almost drinkable. It has assumed a yellowish-grey colour and is
nearly opaque, so that the vessel appears to sail in clay mud. We
are evidently in the area of the Ob-Yenisej current. The ice we
sailed through yesterday probably came from the Gulf of Obi, Yenisej
or Pjaesina. Its surface was dirty, not clean and white like the
surface of glacier-ice or the sea-ice that has never come in contact
with land or with muddy river-water. Off the large rivers the ice,
when the snow has melted, is generally covered with a yellow layer
of clay. This clay evidently consists of mud, which has been washed
down by the river-water and been afterwards thrown up by the swell
on the snow-covered ice. The layer of snow acts as a filter and
separates the mud from the water. The former, therefore, after the
melting of the snow may form upon true sea-ice a layer of dirt,
containing a large number of minute organisms which live only in
fresh water.

_August 5th._ Still under sail in the Kara Sea, in which a few
pieces of ice are floating about. The ice completely disappeared
when we came north-west of Beli Ostrov. We were several times in the
course of the day in only nine metres of water, which, however, in
consequence of the evenness of the bottom, is not dangerous. Fog, a
heavy sea, and an intermittent but pretty fresh breeze delayed our
progress.

_August 6th._ At three o'clock in the morning we had land in sight.
In the fog we had gone a little way up the Gulf of Yenisej, and so
had to turn in order to r