, 1911-05-11

side connection between Il and the
hut, SO that they we're quite indepen-
dent Of the weather. And 1t must
have been a great place to make OBJ
servations from"
Have been!" she echoed question
ingly. Isn't 1t nowT'
mo, because it's all showed and
frozen in. It's buried, I don't know
how many feet deep by this time, and
dark. OF course. as q pocket. But
everything inside IL quite undisturbed.
/ doubt II q single member Of the wal
rus crew ever saw 1t, or even sus-
pected that such q place existed"
He unbuttoned his jacket and tool
from al inner pocket a scrap Of pa
per.
Being a ~methodfcal person." he OK
planned, 81 made an inventory. It's
really quite q respectable list"
She seated herself beside him on
the bunk as II to read the paper.
81 imagine you will need ar inter
prefer" he said. I've half forgotten
what these racks meal myself. Ny
hands were SO stiff with the cold 1t
wasn't very easy to write. But that
first word 10 telescope. And then
there are the meteorological instru-
ments, barometers. thermometers, and
SO on. and the Phoenix's compass, sex
tant and chronometer, . microscope,
a parafine oven and . big chunk Of
parafine, an oil lamp. . nve-gallon can
about half full Of oil, and a small
stove. There was q providential treas
ure for me in the form of . razor,
which they used. I suppose. for cutting
microscopic sections with. I'm glad
they hadn't . microtone to do 1t prop
erly."
You didn't ind q comb for me, did
your" she asked. Because, unless
you did, OIL until you do, you won't
be allowed to use the razor"
II suppose I could make you one,
~ q sort of one. 1t would be genuine
ivory, anyway"
He had come. apparently. to the sad
Of the list.
Well" she said. 81 suppose we
might find something to do with Al
most any one Of those things; some
of them will be useful, certainly. And
- . DltdsdHt, oOLiSIoW, lhihh u oui
little pilot house. all showed in, up
on the cliff head. and OF our in
side passage leading UP to it,
That's quite true" he said. Il sup
pose it's all romantic nonsense, but 1t
does give one a certain feeling OF Sc
security. However," he went
on. we're not reduced as yet to any
thing as intangible al that as a sub
ject for giving thanks. You haven't
seen the whole of my list yet. I've
saved the best till the last"
He turned the paper owe In his
as he spoke. She did not attempt
to read what he had written, but sat
there beside him, her hands clasped
about me knee, her eyes upon the
foot which was poised across
the other, and waited rather tensely
him to tell her.
It's not so very much, but 1t will
an immense lot TO us. What
die of in the arctic Is not SO
often disease or accident, or even, di-
cold or starvation. They die
often OF disgust and WEAKNESS
and exhaustion. Your father knew
that, and he set apart from his gen
eral stores some luxuries and delica-
cies, or things that would seem to be
such to men in their plight. to be used
emergency. I'm SURE that's
why he took them up there and hid
them away. Part of them are left. l
wish he could have known to whom
they were going to be of use. There's
a little cask with brandy in it. a good
sized pot nearly full Of beef extract, =
jar of dried eggs. three tins OF con-
milk, a big ten-pound box Of
Albert biscuit"
His voice broke OF there sharply,
but without the downward infection
she would have expected had he
the end. 50 she looked quick
ly and c~uriously up into his face. AS
quickly. her eyes sought the bit Of pa
per which still lay open in his hand.
You didn't finish" she said. There
was something else"
81 thought too late. Oh! it's moth
but 1t caught me-rather. and l
thought 1 would spare you the twinge
finding 1t had given me. l might
have read 1t right out. 1t was
a big plum pudding. in a tin, you
know-Cross & Blackwell's. But there
1t was, waiting, l suppose, to lend
some sort of an air Of festivtty TO
next Christmas"
The girl rose from her seat beside
him and going owe to the window.
for i while gazing VI the
beach.
1t was Just about the same time in
the afternoon that 1t had been yester-
day when he set out. awning. to md
her, and had come flying down out Of
sky to drive away the sudden
nameless terror which had beset her.
That thought led him. now to visua-
lie some sticks Of wood. rather too
large to carry. which had been lying
the beach near where he had found
her. Thinking that 1t would be q