A Diary and Journal from the Second Grinnell Expedition

Rensselaer Harbour June 8th

Sunday June 4

Brig Advance now frozen in quarters Rensselaer Harbour June 8th

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If Hans succeeds in his efforts he may catch Morton before he leaves the glacier and thus make the Exploration which will perfect our voyage. Should this be done many a larger expedition equipped with every resource of art and science has done less and none could do more.

The reindeer was brought home by Dr. Hayes and Mr. Ohlsen. Petersen was well enough to make a seal screen in the hope of being able to use it during Hans' absence.

William Godfrey continues on the sick list. Malingering!! Hayes [?] [swasion?] with his physic and failed. Bill is a bad fellow. Sonntag again able to attend to magnetics.

[Margin:] Friday June 16

Two long tailed duck ([?]) visited us evidently seeking their breeding grounds. They are beautiful either at rest or on the wing. We now have the snow bird, the snipe, the Burgomaster gull and the long-tailed duck enlivening our solitude. But the snow birds only are in numbers crowding our rocky island and making our sunny night time musical with home remembered songs. Of all the rest we have but a solitary pair who seem to have left their fellows and sought this far northern mating ground in order to love unmolested. I long for specimens but they shall not be fired at.

The Ptarmagan show a singular backwardness in assuming the summer fea= thering. The male is still entirely white

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of my little family are seated in a kind and even lovable manner around our fire.

Just as we were sitting down to our usual Sunday's Chapter in the Bible McGeary and Morton returned pretty well worn out by a journey of at least 70 miles. They brought with them a flipper of walrus weighing in beef, bone, and blubber about 40 lbs, and we soon gave them a welcome over a cheering supper.

We had hardly taken our seats before the deck watch announced Ohlsen and Hans, our former which I had [illegible] hunting party [illegible] returning after five nights on the snow. Save Goodfellow every one of our little party was again aboard. Prayers were read our seal oil lamp of [posterity?] substituted for the smoking [slush?], a half wine glass of gin served out, Extra walrus steaks put upon the gridiron and we all sat down a trusting little party to eat and be filled.

The table talk, brought with sharp clearness before me the wild life we lead. Here had one party made seventy four miles by dogs in two days and another one hundred and sixty on foot in five days. The therm throughout measuring below zero and neither Company having any other night shelter than the Buffalo Bag. I brought [?] of the reward of all this toil Three Rabbits, two Ptarmagan & 40 [lbs] of walrus beef and composed mentally our condition with that of the dear people at home.

So Wed am I [?] hard bivouacks and long marched that it seems a mere walk to make my 60 miles in the snow. The country, if thus the wild range of ice

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that the snow wont lay and it piles up over the land ice like haystacks. I pity them that's out on the floe. He thought poor fellow of the companions whose selfish fears had made them abandon their trust, and in whose ranks he came so near being. I was thinking of Goodfellow our one child never able to take care of himself and now perhaps a second time adrift among the hills.

So they eat on telling their stories and I listening and questioning — for we have no formal reports now — and from McGeary I gathered this.

He and Morton had sledged along the ice food completely around "the reach" and made "the Huts" by ten o'clo that night. The natives were three in number, Otuniah & [his son] the elfish Myosu, the third unknown a stranger. Myosu who had been a prisoner for stealing and at this moment was an escaped hostages, held in pawn for a certain amount of walrus beef by way of indemnity for the destroyed boat, feared greatly lest they had come after him. When however he found by McGearys expressive pantomime that he was a simple visitor, and as such a claimant for the same hospitali=ty which we had so often extended to them the entire character of the savage seemed to undergo a change he appeared in a new aspect, a different & hardly recognizable phase of the same brutal thief Myosu.

Morton and McGeary, although

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"Nanouk!!" sings out Hans and Morton bellowing at the top of his voice "be quiet", "no noise", reports a bear.

Somewhat to the shame of my domestic regulations the guns were impracticable. While every man was loading and capping I seized my "six shooter", always my fellow companion, and ran on deck.

A medium sized bear with a four month cub was in active warfare with our dogs. As they hurry about her skirts she ran with wonderful alertness after a [some?] one selected victim and snatching him up by the nape of the neck flung him many feet or rather yards, bu a barely perceptible twist of her powerful neck.

Tudli our master dog had already after two such flings been placed out of fight. Jenny just as I emerged for the match made a sault of [becomingly?] eight fathoms alighting senseless. "Old Whitey", staunch but in bear wise, who had just come up to the battle, was tossed into utter helplessness, and yelping on the snow, while in the midst of all this "Nannook" saught our beef house and began in the most unconerned and business like manner to turn over the barrels and nose out the fatness of the land.

I do not know whether this bold beast would have stood our five unless her parental instinct had been called into play. Now she was apparently devoid of fear realising the old stories of Barent and the Spitzbergen voyagers. I lodged a pistol ball in the side of her