NORTH POLE OF THE WINDS 



the small lakes. Between the lakes the sites of 

 river rapids in the summer time seemed almost in- 

 numerable, and here the gigantic boulders made 

 it necessary to drive over bare ground while going 

 around. 



As if this did not present difficulties enough, the 

 foehn wind blowing in their faces was constantly 

 increasing in violence. At one point they met with 

 a cataract one hundred feet high. Here the grade 

 was too steep to drive around it. The wind was roar- 

 ing through the gaps in the mountain, and the low 

 stratus clouds were moving out with hurricane ve- 

 locity. A halt was made and the Eskimos went 

 out a half mile in advance to see what the country 

 ahead was like. 



In his diary Carlson wrote: "Mathias and Hansi 

 returned at ten-thirty and reported the river up 

 ahead to be very bad. Their childish nature and 

 easy discouragement have already shown them- 

 selves. INIathias pleads with me to turn back and 

 go home. I refuse to listen to him, and declare we 

 are going to push ahead as long as the food lasts, 

 regardless of how slow our progress may be. With 

 much grumbling and many "ajorpogs" (Eskimo 

 for "no good"), they returned with me to the sleds. 

 We are going to haul the equipment on our backs 

 and pull it over the cataract with a rope which I 



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