We rested a bit on the beach, and then came on in very scattered order to the cache, the two miles taking about two hours, as the alder-bush on the face of the moraine was very bad, and the stream was too high for us to get along on the flats by wading every now and then, as the men had generally been able to do. H., who stopped to photograph, went all wrong, away from the river towards Camp C, and as he came back fell foul of a wasp’s nest, and got stung in two or three places. Jimmy, who was one of the first at the cache, earned our high approval by coming back of his own accord to help Shorty in with his load. We were all collected by half-past two, and rested all the afternoon. Supper was at 4.30, and we at last got hold of the dried vegetables, which the men had always forgotten to bring up, and made some splendid soup. Just above the cache E. found a white willow-herb, and I collected some seed of the red kind to try in England.
While we were resting in the afternoon Matthew told us that the Indians called the river Yahkhtze-tah-heen (Muddy Harbour River), and Mount St. Elias Yahkhtze-tah-shah (Muddy Harbour Mountain). George, the second chief of Yakutat, afterwards told us that there used to be two villages, one on the sea and the other at the foot of St. Elias, but that the glaciers came down and destroyed them, according to him, in a single night. As the Alaska glaciers are all rapidly receding, this must have been a very long time ago, for a hundred years back, when the country was first visited, there was far more ice than there is now, Vancouver having been unable to enter Glacier Bay for the ice, while Icy Bay, even on modern charts, is represented as being of a V-shape from the glaciers running out on either side, whereas it now hardly deserves the name of a bay at all.
Meaning to make an early start, we turned in at six o’clock, but were driven wild by the millions of mosquitoes that invaded our tent. By this time we were thoroughly inoculated against the effects of their bites, but their continuous trumpeting destroyed all chance of sleep; after a time we arose and drove out and slew as many as we could, after which we endeavoured to close up every possible aperture. Our success was but partial, but we managed to get a little sleep.
Tuesday, the 7th.—We got up at 4 A.M., and were off by 5.45; an hour’s steady going brought us down to Camp B, and we went on by the old route to the point where Gums declared Schwatka had had a camp. Here we turned to the left instead of keeping down the main river. At first we had a good lot of wading, but presently reached some flats, over which we made more satisfactory progress. At this point some wild-geese were discovered far ahead, and Shorty set forth to stalk them; as, however, he was unwilling to crawl over the wet mud, his six-foot-four frightened them away while he was still three or four hundred yards off. On these flats were a great many small frogs, of which most of the Indians were much afraid, holding some kind of superstition about them; but Matthew and Jimmy were apparently sceptics, and the latter, with a sly look at us, put a frog on the back of Billy, who, though his great friend, was perfectly furious, and for a minute I thought we were going to have a first-class row.
At last we approached the deep creek where the men had once had to make a raft. Now the crossing appeared feasible, but it was hard to be sure, as all the neighbouring land on our side was under water. In the midst of this was a stranded log, where we rested and took off our coats, fastening them on to our packs, which we carried on our heads. H. planted the camera in the water, and prepared to photograph the passage. Gums, of course, led; and at the second attempt discovered a place where the water was hardly over his armpits. This was all right for the taller ones of us, but E. went in well up to his chin, as did Finn, who, losing his footing, vanished with his pack. Great was the dismay till it was discovered that he was only carrying the bacon. Jimmy also disappeared altogether, and had eventually to be convoyed across by Gums and Matthew. Last of all came W. and H., the latter bearing the camera. He chanced on a deepish place, and nearly went under, but struggled on, quoting: ‘And nobly Father Tiber bare up his faltering chin’—which chin, decked with a ruddy beard, had dipped beneath the icy wave before he emerged on the other side.
Three-quarters of an hour through the trees, and then a little wading, brought us to the mouth of the first river at eleven o’clock, and we halted for a little lunch and a great many strawberries, which were not yet over in shady places or long grass. We then pushed on along the beach to camp, the packs being brought down the lagoon in the small canoe, and arrived at 1.15, hoping to start at once for Yakutat; but the other Indians had gone hunting, and we had to await their return, which was not till five o’clock. After some supper we got off at 6.20; it was perfectly calm, and we didn’t ship a drop of water, or get wet above our knees. There was a five-gallon can of kerosene which we said could be left on the beach; Mike, however, wished to take it in the small canoe, but Gums, after a lively argument, settled the question by driving an ice-axe into it. It was a fair squeeze for twelve in the big canoe; I curled up just forward of the bow oar, the other three were in the stern, and hardly so well off. We rowed and paddled to Cape Sitkagi (10 P.M.), when a fresh breeze from the west sprang up, and, towing the small canoe, we sailed to Point Manby, which we passed at 4 A.M.
Wednesday, the 8th.—The breeze then began to die away, and vanished at five, so we had to row again, and got to Yakutat at ten o’clock. De Groff greeted us, and gave us four breakfast, which included the unwonted luxuries of butter and honey; the men, who were a little sulky after their night’s exertions, cooked theirs on his stove. Then H. paid off Ed., Finn, and the Yakutats, and arranged to leave our Indians in the village as before, after which we went over to the Swedish Mission on the mainland opposite, and encamped in the yard. Ed. came too, and Finn followed in the evening. We bathed in the sea, which was decidedly cold; but the lake at the back was too muddy, and also too near George’s ranche to be pleasant. De Groff expected the ‘Alpha’ to arrive about the 10th.