The Winter. Night. 229 



some of the members of the expedition would hardly 

 leave the ship without being armed to the teeth." 



" Wednesday, October 4th. North-westerly wind yes- 

 terday and to-day. Yesterday we had 16 (3 F.), and 

 to-day 14 C. (7 F.). I have worked all day at sound- 

 ings and got to about 800 fathoms depth. The bottom 

 samples consisted of a layer of grey clay 4 to 4^ 

 inches thick, and below that brown clay or mud. The 

 temperature was, strangely enough, just above freezing 

 point (+ o - i8 C.) at the bottom, and just below 

 freezing point ( o'4 C.) 75 fathoms up. This rather 

 disposes of the story of a shallow polar basin, and of 

 the extreme coldness of the water of the Arctic Ocean. 



"While we were hauling up the line in the afternoon, 

 the ice cracked a little astern of the Frani, and the 

 crack increased in breadth so quickly, that three of 

 us, who had to go out to save the ice-anchors, were 

 obliged to make a bridge over it with a long board 

 to get back to the ship again. Later in the evening 

 there was some packing in the ice, and several new 

 passages opened out behind this first one. 



"Thursday, October 5th. As I was dressing this 

 morning, just before breakfast, the mate rushed down 

 to tell me a bear was in sight. I was soon on deck 

 and saw him coming from the south, to the lee of us. 

 He was still a good way off, but stopped and looked 

 about. Presently he lay clown, and Henriksen and 

 I started off across the ice, and w r ere lucky enough to 



