The Winter Night. 263 



up hill ? My plan has come to nothing. That palace of 

 theory, which I reared in pride and self-confidence, high 

 above all silly objections, has fallen like a house of cards 

 at the first breath of wind. Build up the most ingenious 

 theories, and you may be sure of one thing that fact 

 will defy them all. Was I so very sure ? Yes, at 

 times ; but that was self-deception, intoxication. A 

 secret doubt lurked behind all the reasoning. It seemed 

 as though the longer I defended my theory, the nearer 

 I came to doubting it. But no, there is no getting over 

 the evidence of that Siberian clrift-wood. 



" But if, after all, we are on the wrong track, what 

 then ? Only disappointed human hopes, nothing more. 

 And even if we perish, what will it matter in the endless 

 cycles of eternity ? ' 



" Thursday, November Qth. I took temperatures and 

 sea- water samples to-day every 10 yards from the 

 surface to the bottom. The depth was 9^- fathoms. An 

 extraordinarily even temperature of 30 Fahr. (--1*5 C.) 

 through all the layers. I have noticed the same thing 

 before as far south as this. So it is only polar water 

 here ? There is not much pressure ; an inclination to it 

 this morning, and a little at 8 o'clock this evening, 

 also a few r squeezes later, when we were playing cards." 



" Friday, November loth. This morning made 

 despairing examinations of yesterday's water samples 

 with Thornoe's electric apparatus. There must be 

 absolute stillness on board when this is <>'oino- on. The 



