The farmer and mechanic., 1909-09-14


with the dead reckoning of Marvin.
Eartlett, and myself. Up to this time
the shght latitude of the sun had made
II not worth While TO waste time in
observations On the next two marches
the going improved, and We covered
marches lead delayed US few
hours We finally ferried across on
the ice cakes
The next day bartlett led himself
out. evidently, for a record, and reeled
off plump twenty miles Here Mar
ftn obtained another satisfactory
sight on latitude, which gave the posi-
ton as S6.2S or beyond the farthest
nofth OF NanSen and AbruZzi and
showed that we had covered so min
utes of latitude in three marches II
these three marches we had passed
the norwegian record of S6.14 by Nan
sen and the Italian record of 1854 by
CagEi
From this point Marvin turned back
In command Of the third supporting
party. My last words to him were,
BE careful of the leads my boy"
Impossible to See Any Distance.
The party from this point comprised
men, Z sledges, and SO dogs. TIE
cOndlt1Ons at this camp and the ap-
parently unbroken expanse of fairly
level ice in every direction reminded
me OF Cagni's description of his
celved by the apparently favorable
outlook, for available conditions never
continue for any distance or any
length of time in the arctic regions
The north march was over good go
ing, but for the first time since leav-
ing land We experienced that cOndi-
ton, frequent over these ice fields, of
a hazy atmosphere in which the light
is equal everywhere. All relief is de-
stroyed and it is impossible to see for
any distance.
We were oliged in this march to
make a detour around an open lead
In the next march We encountered the
heaviest and deepest snow of the jour
ney through a thick smothering man
tie lying in the depreSSionS of heavy
rubble ice | came upon Bartlett and
his party, tagged out and temporarily
discouraged by the heart-racking &
work of making road.
l knew what was the matter with
them. They were simply spoiled by the
good going on the previous marches.
I rallied them on a bit, lightened their
| sledges, and set them on encouraged
again.
Thick Haze Over the Ice.
During the next march we Travelled
through a thick haze drifting over the
ice before a biting air from the north
east. At the end Of the march we
came upon the captain camped beside
/
water sky northwest, north, and north
| east. We built our glOOS and turned
! in, but before / had fallen asleep ]
was reused by movement of the
ice and found starting condition of
| affairs-a rapidly widening road of
| black water ran but a few feet from
! our igloos. One of my teams of dogs
| had escaped by only a few feet from
| being dragged by the movement of
the ice into the Wate'x'
/ Another team had an equally mar
row escape from being crushed by the
ice blocks piled over them. The ice
| on the north side Of the lead was
moving around eastward. The small
/ floor on which were the capita in S
! ig}oos was drifting eastward in the
/ open water, and the side of our igloos
! threatened to follow suit.
| Ready for Quick Dash.
/ Kicking out the door of the igloos,
called to the captains men to pack
! their sledges and be ready for a quick
t dash when a favorable chance arriv-
| ed.
We hurried our things on our sled
geS, hitched the dogs. and moved on
! to a large flow west of US. Then, leav-
/ ing one man to look out for the dogs
and sIedges, we hurried over to assist
the captain and his party to join us.
/ A corner Of their raft impinged on
the ice on our side. For the rest of
the night and during the day the ice
suffered the torments of the damned
surging together, opening out, groan-
ing and grinding while the open wa
ter belched black smoke like a prairie
fire Then the motion ceased; the
open water closed; the atmosphere to
the north was cleared, and we rushed
across before the ice should open
again A succession of 1ateral1y open
leads were crossed, and after them
some heavy old ice and then we came
to q layer of young ice some Of which
buckled under our sledges, and this
gave us a straight way of six miles
to the north Then came more heavy
| old floes covered with hard snow. This
was a good long march.
The next march was also a long one.
# was BartlettS last hit He let
! himself out over a series of large old