for the past ten years, but had never
opportunity to test its usefulness until now. So, although it read no
lower than about fifteen inches, he took it with him to observe its
operation. Lastly, completing the hypsometrical equipment, was a
boiling-point thermometer, with its own lamp and case, reading to 165
deg. by tenths of a degree.

Then there were the ice-creepers or crampons to adjust to the
moccasins--terribly heavy, clumsy rat-trap affairs they looked, but they
served us well on the higher reaches of the mountain and are, if not
indispensable, at least most valuable where hard snow or ice is to be
climbed. The snow-shoes, also, had to be rough-locked by lashing a
wedge-shaped bar of hardwood underneath, just above the tread, and
screwing calks along the sides. Thus armed, they gave us sure footing on
soft snow slopes, and were particularly useful in ascending the glacier.
While thus occupied at the base camp, came an Indian, his wife and
child, all the way from Lake Minchumina, perhaps one hundred miles'
journey, to have the child baptized. It was generally known amongst all
the natives of the region that the enterprise was on foot, and
"Minchumina John," hoping to meet us in the Kantishna, and missing us,
had followed our trail thus far. It was interesting to speculate how
much further he would have penetrated: Walter thought as far as the
glacier, but I think he would have followed as far as the dogs could go
or until food was quite exhausted.

[Illustration: The base camp at about 4,000 feet on Cache Creek.

The Muldrow Glacier flows between the ridge in the background and the
peak just beyond it.]

Meanwhile, the relaying of the supplies and the wood to the base camp
had gone on, and the advancing of it to a cache at the pass by which we
should gain the Muldrow Glacier. On 15th April Esaias and one of the
teams were sent back to Nenana. Almost all the stuff we should move was
already at this cache, and the need for the two dog teams was over.
Moreover, the trails were rapidly breaking up, and it was necessary for
the boy to travel by night instead of by day on his return trip. Johnny
and the other dog team we kept, because we designed to use the dogs up
to the head of the glacier, and the boy to keep the base camp and tend
the dogs, when this was done, until our return. So we said good-by to
Esaias, and he took out the last word that was received from us in more
than two months.

[Sidenote: McPhee Pa