300 A DAY AT FRAMHEIM 



Here comes Amundsen. He has evidently been out 

 taking the meteorological observations, as he holds the 

 anemometer in one hand. I follow him through the 

 passage, and, when no one is looking, take the oppor- 

 tunity of slapping him on the shoulder and saying: 

 'A grand lot of boys." He only smiled; but a smile 

 may often say more than many words. I understood 

 what it meant; he had known that a long while and a 

 good deal more. 



It was now eight o'clock. The door from the kitchen 

 to the room was left wide open, and the warmth streamed 

 in and mixed with the fresh air that Stubberud had now 

 forced to come down the right way. Now it was 

 pleasanter inside fresh, warm air everywhere. Then 

 came a very interesting scene. As the tooth-brushing 

 gentlemen returned, they had to guess the temperature, 

 one by one. This gave occasion for much joking and 

 fun, and, amid laughter and chat, the first meal of the 

 day was taken. In after-dinner speeches, arnid toasts 

 and enthusiasm, our Polar explorers are often compared 

 with our forefathers, the bold vikings. This comparison 

 never occurred to me for a moment when I saw this 

 assemblage of ordinary, everyday men brushing their 

 teeth. But now that they were busy with the dishes, I 

 was bound to acknowledge its aptitude; for our fore- 

 fathers the vikings could not possibly have attacked 

 their food with greater energy than these nine men 

 did. 



