CHAPTER XV. 



HIE ARCTIC MTDNIGIIT. — SONNTAG STARTS FOR WHALE SOUND. — EFFECTS OP 

 DARKNESS ON THE SPIRITS. — ROUTINE OF DUTIES. — CHRISTMAS EVE — 

 CHRISTMAS DAY. — THE CHRISTMAS DINNER. 



December 2 2d. 



The sun has reached to-day its greatest southern 

 declination, and we have passed the Arctic Midnight. 

 The winter solstice is to us the meridian day, as 

 twelve o'clock is the meridian hour to those who 

 dwell in lands where the sun comes three hundred 

 and sixty-five times instead of once in the " revolving 

 year." 



To me these last four weeks have been eventful 

 ones, and I hail this day with joy, and am glad to 

 feel that we are now on the downward hill-side of the 

 polar darkness. The death of my dogs fills me with 

 sadness, and this sadness is doubled when I think that 

 the disaster has sent Sonntag into the dangers of the 

 night to remedy in season the evil. 



Sonntag set out yesterday to reach the Esquimaux. 

 We had talked the matter over from day to day, and 

 saw clearly that it was the only thing to do. Hans 

 told us that the Esquimaux would congregate about 

 Cape York towards the spring, and it was evident that 

 if we waited for daylight they would be beyond our 

 reach. There seemed from Hans's storv to be at least 

 a reasonable probability that some of them might be 

 at Sorfalik, or at other stations on the north side of 



