CHAPTER XXI. 



LIEUTENANT DE LONG'S LOG-BOOK. 



DURING the time when Lieutenant Danenhower was 

 relieved from duty as navigator of the Jeannette, on 

 account of his eyes, the log of the ship was kept by the 

 commander of the expedition. Lieutenant DeLong always 

 made his entries with two dates, that is, he did not advance 

 one day on crossing the 180th meridian to east longitude, 

 because he expected to drift back again to west longitude, as 

 he had often done before. He always clung to the idea that 

 he would experience a northeast drift, sooner or later, and 

 re-cross that meridian. 



The log-books of the Jeannette were taken to the Siberian 

 coast by Lieutenant DeLong, and were left, with other 

 articles, near the beacli when he started south, September 

 19th. They were recovered by Mr. Melville, November 14th, 

 and Lieutenant Danenhower brought them home. The fol- 

 lowing are extracts from the log-book, kept by Lieutenant 

 DeLong, commencing with the discovery of Jeannette Island, 

 and continuing to the end ; the last entry, Saturday, June 

 llth, was made with a lead pencil : 



LOG OF THE UNITED STATES ARCTIC STEAMER JEANNETTE, BE- 

 SET AND DRIFTING IN THE PACK-ICE ABOUT FIVE 

 HUNDRED MILES NORTH-WEST OF HERALD 

 ISLAND, ARCTIC OCEAN. 



TUESDAY, May 17, 1881. Latitude by observation at 

 noon, north 76 deg. 43 min. 20 sec. ; longitude by chronom- 

 eter from afternoon observations, east 161 deg. 53 min. 45 

 sec. ; sounded in forty-three fathoms ; muddy bottom ; a 



(262) 



