342 ACCIDENT TO JEN-SEN. 



If foftunate in point of distance accomplished, yet 

 the day was not all that I had hoped. The land-ice 

 was exceedingly rough, and it was not without much 

 difficulty that we effected a passage around some of 

 the points. In one of our most difficult encounters 

 of this nature, Jensen slipped, and again injured his 

 leg, and afterwards sprained his back while lifting his 

 sledge. In consequence of these accidents our prog- 

 ress was much retarded during the following day, and 

 involved me again in serious embarrassment. My 

 diary thus sums up our situation : — 



May 15th. 



Jensen, my strongest man and the one npon whose 

 physical endurance I have always relied most confi- 

 dently, is not only fatigued but completely broken 

 down. He lies on the sledge, moaning and groaning 

 with pain from a sprained back and his injured leg ; 

 and what to do with him I do not see. He appears 

 to be unable to go further, and the only question con- 

 cerning him seems to be, how he is to be got home. 

 With anything like a fair field, I ought to reach about 

 lat. 83°, but the loss of Jensen's muscular strength is 

 damaging to me. The track has been execrable to- 

 day ; and yet, all things considered, we have done 

 very well. We have made, at the least, twenty miles. 

 McDonald is pretty well used up, and Knorr is quite 

 as bad, if he could be got to own it. Jensen's suffer- 

 ings have naturally affected his spirits ; and with 

 these long hundreds of miles lying behind us, it is 

 perhaps not surprising that his only present expecta- 

 tion will be realized, if his bones are left to bleach 

 among these barren rocks. What I shall do to- 

 morrow, the morrow must determine. Thanks to 

 careful nursing, I have yet my dogs in fair condition ; 

 and that is the best part of the battle. 



