48 FOUR YEARS IN THE WHITE NORTH [Jan. 



The sole of all the boots is made from the extremely 

 tough skin of the bearded seal (Erignathus harbatus). 



Beneath the fur. clothing we wore a light suit of 

 woolen to prevent chafing and to absorb perspiration. 

 If one is clothed in this manner and is dry, he can lie 

 in the snow and sleep in perfect comfort at fifty and 

 sixty below zero. I believe Peary was the first Arctic 

 explorer to attempt work during the extremely low 

 temperature of February and March without a sleeping- 

 bag. We adopted the Peary method on many of our 

 journeys. We contracted slightly the fur-bordered 

 opening of the hood; bound the bottom of our caribou- 

 skin coats tightly between our legs; withdrew our arms 

 and placed them upon the warm body; tucked the 

 ever-to-be-desired mittens into the empty sleeves; and 

 then, with a hunch of the shoulder, placed the sleeve 

 over the face to protect it from freezing. 



Sleeping in this manner, one is ever ready for an 

 emergency call, such as the inevitable rush of one's 

 dogs, which frequently break the fastenings; the visit 

 of a polar bear; or the not remote possibility of the 

 cracking of the sea ice, resulting in a slowly widening 

 fissure beneath the bed. The last contingency may have 

 been the cause of the loss of Captain Cagni's first sup- 

 porting party, which was returning under the command 

 of Lieutenant Querini from a point of eighty-eight miles 

 offshore. Not a trace of the three men or their equip- 

 ment was ever found. 



The adage of the woolen-clothed explorer of a half 

 a century ago, "To sleep means death," has lost its 

 meaning. It would be absolutely impossible for a man 

 clothed as we were to freeze to death. 



We tested the strength and fitness of every item of 



