48o THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



formed inside the doorway ; it is, however, very objectionable, and 

 should not be practised more than is absohitely necessary, as the 

 steam condensing covers every thing near it with fine particles of 

 frozen vapor, and the soot from the stearine-lamp blackens ever}' 

 thing. The furniture for a tent consists first of a water-proof floor- 

 cloth, made of a light description of mackintosh ; this should be used 

 with care, and only over snow. The coverlet should be made of the 

 Hudson's Bay three-point blanket or thick dufiie, its upper side cov- 

 ered with glazed brown holland. Three stops should be sewn on one 

 end of this coverlet, for tying it when rolled i;p, and when in use for 

 tying it to the lower robe at the upper end or head of the tent. The 

 knapsack forms the pillow. 



The canvas floor-cloth, though not absolutely indispensable, is, 

 however, very useful. It is made of very light unbleached duck, and 

 is also used as the sledge-sail, which is only set when the wind is 

 abaft the beam. It should be laid down over the water-proof floor- 

 cloth, when the men are taking ofi" their boots and taking their sup- 

 l^ers. In severe weather, when the breath condenses in the tent and 

 falls in minute frozen particles, the canvas floor-cloth is useful to spread 

 " over all " after the men have laid down, as it catches all this fine 

 snow, which would otherwise penetrate into the coverlet, where it 

 would thaw by the heat from the men's bodies, and be frozen into 

 them again when exposed to the air. " So rapidly," says Sir Leopold 

 McClintock, " does frost accumulate, that in eighteen days of traveling 

 during the month of October I have known the coverlet and the low- 

 er robe to become more than double their original weisfht." 



The lower robe or blanket should be of the same material as the 

 coverlet, namely, three-point Hudson's Bay blanket or thick dufiie. It 

 should have a covering of brown holland on its underneath side, hav- 

 ing stops on its upper side to tie to similar stops on the coverlet when 

 spread for the night : probable weight of the lower robe about seven- 

 teen pounds. This robe has sometimes been of fur, but it has its dis- 

 advantages, as in the first place it is more absorbent ; a skin will 

 when wet emit a disagreeable smell ; the hairs come out, and they 

 shrink very much ; they are also more stifi" and unmanageable when 

 frozen. The above-mentioned woolen materials are on the whole pref- 

 erable, as they are quite as warm as fur, when covered with the brown 

 holland, in addition to which evapoi*ation from the body will generally 

 make its way through woolens, and escape into the air, but in the 

 fur robe is arrested and condenses in it. The coverlet, lower robe, 

 and sleeping-bag, answer well when the temperature is no lower than 

 30, but should it fall lower, an additional coverlet should be sup- 

 plied, as well as a small blanket bag to put into the sleeping-bag to 

 keep the feet warm. Should the temperature continue to fall, snow 

 huts should be used, they being very much better and warmer than 

 tents. A party of four men can, after a little practice, hut themselves 



