CAMPING ARRANGEMENTS 3 



Hassel, and, finally, Wistingand I. Wehad just gone up 

 a little slope, when we saw that it dropped rather steeply 

 on the other side; the descent could not be more than 

 20 yards long. I sat with my back to the dogs, looking 

 aft, and was enjoying the brisk drive. Then suddenly 

 the surface by the side of the sledge dropped perpen- 

 dicularly, and showed a yawning black abyss, large 

 enough to have swallowed us all, and a little more. A 

 few inches more to one side, and we should have taken 

 no part in the Polar journey. We guessed from this 

 broken surface that we had come too far to the east, 

 and altered our course more westerly. When we had 

 reached safer ground, I took the opportunity of putting 

 on my ski and driving so; in this way the weight was 

 more distributed. Before very long it cleared a little, 

 and we saw one of our mark-flags straight ahead. We 

 went up to it; many memories clung to the spot — cold 

 and slaughter of dogs. It was there we had killed the 

 three puppies on the last trip. 



We had then covered seventeen miles, and we camped, 

 well pleased with the first day of our long journey. My 

 belief that, with all in one tent, we should manage our 

 camping and preparations much better than before was 

 fully justified. The tent went up as though it arose out 

 of the ground, and everything was done as though we 

 had had long practice. We found we had ample room 

 in the tent, and our arrangements worked splendidly the 

 whole time. They were as follows: as soon as we 



