urface, completely
fresh. It can therefore be used in cooking only in case of the
greatest necessity. But two streams on the mainland, one debouching
north and the other south of the harbour, yield an abundant supply
of good water, in case snow water cannot be obtained from any of the
beds of snow which up to autumn are to be found at several places
along the strand escarpments in the neighbourhood of the harbour.

At our arrival six wild reindeer were seen pasturing on Dickson's
Island; one of them was killed by Palander, the others were stalked
unsuccessfully. Some bears, as has already been stated, were also
seen, and everywhere among the heaps of stones there were numerous
remains of the lemming and the fox. With these exceptions there were
few of the higher animals. Of birds we thus saw only snow-buntings,
which bred among the stone heaps both on the mainland and on the
islands, a covey of ptarmigan, a large number of birds, principally
species of Tringa and Phalaropus, but not further determined,
eiders, black guillemots and burgomasters in limited numbers, and
long-tailed ducks and loons in somewhat greater abundance. There are
no "down islands," and as there are no precipitous shore cliffs
neither are there any looneries. A shoal of fish was seen in Lena
Sound, and fish are probably exceedingly abundant. Seals and white
whales also perhaps occur here at certain seasons of the year in no
small numbers. It was doubtless with a view to hunt these animals
that a hut was occupied, the remains of which are visible on one of
the small rocky islands at the north entrance into the harbour. The
ruin, if we may apply the term to a wooden hut which has fallen in
pieces, showed that the building had consisted of a room with a
fireplace and a storehouse situated in front, and that it was only
intended as a summer dwelling for the hunters and fishers who came
hither during the hunting season from the now deserted _simovies_[93]
lying farther south.

I am convinced that the day will come when great warehouses and many
dwellings inhabited all the year round will be found at Port Dickson.
Now the region is entirely uninhabited as far as Goltschicha, although,
as the map reproduced here shows, numerous dwelling-houses were to be
found built along the river bank and sea-shore beyond the mouth of the
Yenisej and as far as to the Pjaesina. They have long since been
abandoned, in the first place in consequence of the hunting falling