ree hours to the
boat with a dozen grouse, six ptarmigan, and a capercailzie. Godfrey was
now a good shot, and the birds, never having been disturbed by the
approach of man, were so tame that he had no difficulty whatever in
making a bag. As he went down to the boat he congratulated himself that
they had not made a start, for the sky was now overcast, and the wind
was already blowing strongly.

"We will have some bread to-day, Luka. These birds deserve something to
eat with them, and our flour is holding out well. We have not eaten
above twenty pounds since we started. I wish we had some yeast or
something to make it rise. By the by I have an idea. Don't mix that
till I come back, Luka."

Here, as when he landed on the Yenesei, he had seen numbers of rough
nests on the ground, the birds being so tame that they often did not fly
off even when he passed quite close to them. He returned to a spot where
he had seen these nests quite thick, and had no difficulty in collecting
a large number of little eggs of a great variety of colour.

"I expect about two out of every three are bad," he said. "We shall have
to break them singly to find out the good ones. Fancy making a cake of
sparrows' eggs!"

Upon breaking them he found that not more than one in five was good.
Still there were quite enough for the purpose. The frying-pan was used
as a basin, and in this he made a sort of batter of eggs and flour. By
the time he had done this four of the grouse were nearly roasted. He
poured the batter into the empty kettle, melted some deer's fat in the
pan, and then poured in the batter again. Then he washed out and filled
the kettle, and placed it upon the fire.

"Now, by the time the water is boiling, Luka, the batter and the grouse
will be cooked. That is what we call a Yorkshire pudding at home; it
will go splendidly with the birds."

The pudding turned out really good, and they enjoyed the meal immensely,
Jack having the bones of the four birds for his share, together with the
solitary fish they had caught the day before. By the time they had
finished they were glad to get up their tent, which they pitched with
the entrance close to the fire, for even in the sheltered spot where
they were fierce gusts of cold wind swept down upon them. The canvas of
the tent was fastened down by heavy stones placed upon it, the furs
brought in, and everything made snug. For three days the storm raged.

"It is a nuisance losing so much time,"