h I made
the journey. I built it on the Yenesei. I have with me a Tartar who
escaped with me and shared my fortunes."

The merchant put on his hat and walked down to the wharf.

"It is a strange craft," he said, "though I have seen some at
Christiania similar in form but smaller, built of wood, that Englishmen
have brought over. And is it possible that you have sailed from the
mouth of the Yenesei in her?"

"There has been no great difficulty about it," Godfrey said. "We have
kept near the coast, and have generally landed when bad weather came on.
I have a gun, and with that and fishing there has been no difficulty
about food. The journey has been a long one. It is seventeen months
since I left Kara. I am provided with Russian money, sir, and shall be
glad if you can tell me what is my best way of getting back to England."

"It is fortunate indeed that you did not arrive here two days later, for
the last steamer will sail for Hamburg to-morrow. She touches at many
ports on her way, but I don't know that you can do better than go to
Hamburg, whence there is a steamer nearly every day to England. If you
had been two days later you would have lost her, for the season is just
over, and you would then have had to travel by land and river down to
Tornea on the Gulf of Bothnia. But come up with me to my house; I am the
agent here for the steamer. What are you going to do with your canoe?"

"I shall take her home with me just as she stands," Godfrey said.

"And the Tartar?"

"Yes, the Tartar and the dog."

"Very well. Stay here for ten minutes," he said to Luka, "I will send a
man down to help you up with the canoe. We may as well put it in my
yard," he went on as he started back with Godfrey. "The people are as
honest as the day, but they might be pulling it about and examining it,
and it is just as well to stow it away safe. Well, this is a wonderful
escape of yours! During the twenty years I have been here, it has never
happened before."

"I wonder it has not been done many times," Godfrey said. "Canoes go
from Archangel to the Petchora, which is quite half-way to the mouth of
the Obi, and there is no more difficulty between the Petchora and the
Yenesei than there is on this side. The first thing to do now is to get
some clothes."

"The first thing to do, I think, is to get some breakfast," the trader
said.

"I have already had some breakfast on board," Godfrey said; "but I
daresay I can eat another."

"I wil