108 AT THE POLE 



circumstances, as it was impossible to keep on one's 

 feet. Three or four paces was often the most we 

 managed to do before falHng down. The sastrugi were 

 very high, and often abrupt; if one came on them 

 unexpectedly, one required to be more than an 

 acrobat to keep on one's feet. The plan we found to 

 work best in these conditions was to let Hanssen's dogs 

 go first; this was an unpleasant job for Hanssen, and 

 for his dogs too, but it succeeded, and succeeded well. 

 An upset here and there was, of course, unavoidable, but 

 with a little patience the sledge was always righted 

 again. The drivers had as much as they could do to 

 support their sledges among the sastrugi, but while 

 supporting the sledges, they had at the same time a 

 support for themselves. It was worse for us who had 

 no sledges, but by keeping in the wake of them we 

 could see where the irregularities lay, and thus get over 

 them. Hanssen deserves a special word of praise for his 

 driving on this surface in such weather. It is a difficult 

 matter to drive Eskimo dogs forward when they cannot 

 see; but Hanssen managed it well, both getting the 

 dogs on and steering his course by compass. One would 

 not think it possible to keep an approximately right 

 course when the uneven ground gives such violent 

 shocks that the needle flies several times round the 

 compass, and is no sooner still again than it recommences 

 the same dance; but when at last we got an observa- 

 tion, it turned out that Hanssen had steered to a hair, 



