Many of our officers and men cordially greeted these poor people as old
acquaintances they were glad to see again, and they were loaded, as
usual, with numerous presents, of which the only danger to be
apprehended was lest they should go mad on account of them. The women
screamed in a convulsive manner at everything they received, and cried
for five minutes together with the excess of their joy; and to the
honour of "John Bull" be it recorded, he sent by one of the men as he
left the ship a piece of sealskin, as a present to _Parree_, being the
first offering of real gratitude, and without any expectation of return,
that I had ever received from any of them. I never saw them express more
surprise than on being assured that we had left Winter Island only a
single day; a circumstance which might well excite their wonder,
considering that they had themselves been above forty in reaching our
present station. They had obtained one reindeer, and had now a large
seal on their sledge, to which we added a quantity of bread-dust, that
seemed acceptable enough to them. As our way lay in the same direction
as theirs, I would gladly have taken their whole establishment on board
the ships to convey them to Amitioke, but for the uncertain nature of
this navigation, which might eventually have put it out of my power to
land them at the precise place of their destination. The ice again
opening, we were now obliged to dismiss them, after half an hour's
visit, when, having run to the Hecla's bows to see Captain Lyon and his
people, they returned to their sledge as fast as their loads of presents
would allow them.

We continued our progress northward, contending with the flood-tide and
the drifting masses of ice; and the difficulties of such a navigation
may be conceived from the following description of what happened to us
on the 9th.