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276 OUTHIER’S JOURNAL OF A VOYAGE TO THE NORTH.
the little Iflands of Hanis and Lappakari. Carloohn is the only ifland which we faw om
our voyage which is inhabited.
At length on Saturday, the thirtieth, at nine in the evening, the wind having abated,
we returned to our boat to proceed towards Torneo. At half paft eleven a large flock
of birds, called Curlews, came over making a horrid noife, and flying very near us:
occafioned by our approaching an ifland formed bya great heap of ftones, on which
they made their nefts. We arrived there at midnight and landed, this caufed an
increafe in the cries of the birds, who when we took any of their little ones ap-
peared ready to attack us. We afterwards pafled by three fimilar iflands. A {trong
S. W. wind rifing, which caufed a great fwell, at two o’clock in the afternoon, we
got into a creek, where we landed. In this place were fifhermen’s houtfes ; it is called
Mufcalackti, and is a little to the N. W. of Simoka. We were told that M. de Mau-
pertuis had been there on Friday. At five o’clock we left this place, and arrived by ten, at
the ifland of Mounolota, where we landed, and from which Torneo is eafily diftinguifhed.
We did not defcend the river by the fame courfe we took on leaving Torneo; we
fteered then E. of the Finnifh church, and the ifland of Biorckholn, near the little ifland
of Rugen, and returned by the other branch of the river to the W.of the ifland of Biorck-
holn, and arrived at the burgomafter’s on Monday, the fecond of July, at three o’clock
in the morning, where we communicated to M. de Maupertuis, all the remarks we had
made on our voyage. He had himfelf undertook a journey along a part of the eaftern
coaft of the gulph, and faw that there were no means of forming a fucceffion of tri-
angles. M. Celfius propofed to poftpone the work until winter, and to effect it by
aétual meafurement on the ice of the gulph: but what fhould we have been doing for three
months, during which we could fee no ftar, the fun being always above the horizon, or
fo little fet that there was a continual ftrong twilight ? Befides, we had not yet received.
the fextant, by which we were to obferve the diftance of certain {tars from the zenith 3
and the inhabitants of Torneo could tell us nothing for certain of the {tate of the gulph
im winter: they imagine that the whole of it is frozen over; but no one could tell us
how far we might with fafety venture on the ice. And if certain of being able to tra-
verfe it, aS. wind happening to blow, the ice would be opened, and fometimes piled
up, and thereby our plans become interrupted, and loft.
It was propofed to cut a line direétly N. andS., avd meafure it with the rod, through
the woods, this was a propofition fuperior in value to our trufting to the ice ; it was.
more certain, but fubject to great inconveniencies. Although the country be not very
uneven, we could never expect to meet with twenty leagues without confiderable eleva-
tions, and without having lakes, rivers, and marfhes, to pafs, which would have made:
this meafure difficult of execution.
At laft M.de Maupertuis refolved on undertaking the operations on the mountains.
M. Viguelius, director of the fchools of Torneo, who had for a long time acted as
paftor, or chaplain, in Lapland, informed us that the river Torneo ran more nearly
from N. to S. than what the maps deferibed, which gave us further encouragement.
M. de Maupertuis laid his plan with M. Duriez, to havea number of foldiers ready to:
forward us in their boats: thefe men are peafants refiding in their own houfes, always
ready at call, either to pafs in review, or to join the army; a very courageous fet of
men, and not afraid of fatigue. There is not an inhabitant of Torneo without one or
more boats; for during the fummer, and as long as the river be navigable, they travel
inno other manner; and it is terribly laborious to walk, as we,in the event, were
obliged to do, through a country made up of marfhes and forelts, and where the mofs
_ grows fo high, that a man can {carcely extricate himfelf from it.
I Tuefday,
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