Friday, September 14th -- Came
aboard last night for an early start; weighed our
anchor about 6 o’clock this morning. The
wind was light and several of the natives towed us
out of the bay in the ship’s boats. Ere
we started the resident missionaries brought their
last batch of letters for Europe, and bade us farewell.
They had been writing most of the night. Now
the good folk will rest after the excitement and bustle
of shiptime. It will be a year before they have
visitors again, unless it be a missionary brother from
Hebron or Mr. MacLaren, the Hudsons Bay Company’s
agent at Nachvak.
It was most interesting to move slowly
out of the bay, passing point after point, each headland
opening up new vistas of grand, snowy mountains at
the heads of the bays southwards, whilst northwards
the great cliff of the Ramah Hill looks down upon
us. Having brought the “Harmony”
round the first point into more open water, where she
can better avail herself of the occasional light puffs
of wind, our Eskimoes came aboard for their breakfasts
and presently rowed away in their boats. They
bade us a hearty “Aksunai” and went down
the side evidently well pleased with their wages.
Nor were they sorry to leave the ship, which was beginning
to roll a little. Accustomed as they are to brave
high waves in their kayaks or flats, they nevertheless
felt the motion of the vessel and were afraid of seasickness.
Before starting John had to splice his oar with a
strip of seal hide. I watched him put it round
the handle, then holding on to the oar with both hands
get the rope in his teeth and pull his lashing tight
with all the strength of his back. So the teeth
served him at each turn.