hem, and they know if they come up they will
have four more barrels at least among them. I think the fighting is all
over now."

Another hour and the canoes were a mile astern, and the land was now but
four or five miles away. Godfrey thought that he could safely resume his
course west, especially as the wind had distinctly freshened.

"I will lay in my paddle now, Luka. I must give all my attention to the
sail. I expect they will give it up. They will think when they see me
cease paddling that we know we can get away from them whenever we like."

Godfrey's surmise turned out correct; the natives did not attempt to
follow, but held on their course straight for the land, paddling slowly
now. They were in two divisions, five or six of the canoes being a good
deal astern of the others, those with single rowers that had followed
them so long having dropped behind to pick up the occupants of the
canoes that had capsized. In several of the canoes in this division
Godfrey could make out that only one man was paddling, and guessed that
the other was more or less disabled by the shot.

"I don't think we shall be troubled any more by them," he said; "they
will be a couple of hours before they reach land, by which time we shall
be out of sight, and even reindeer will hardly take the news along the
shore with all its deep indentations as quickly as we shall sail;
besides, I fancy, they will come to the conclusion that the game is not
worth the candle. Now lay in your paddle and let us have breakfast
comfortably. It is just twelve o'clock."

Day after day they coasted along, passed through Waigatz Straits,
between the island of that name and the mainland, then touched at four
islands lying across the mouth of a large and deep bay, and then held on
until they reached the mouth of the Petchora. The distance to this point
from the Kara River was, Godfrey calculated, about three hundred and
fifty miles. It took them fifteen days to cover that distance, as they
stopped and spent a day shooting several times, for they were not
fortunate along here in catching many fish as they went. On passing one
of the islands Godfrey shot a seal, the flesh of which they found was by
no means bad.

The weather continued very fine, but there was so little wind that
during the whole distance they did not once put up their sail, but
depended entirely upon their paddles. Upon one of their shooting
expeditions Godfrey had the good luck to shoot a very