ACROSS THE FROZEN SEA 217 



Our start from the land this last time was eight days 

 earlier than the start three years before, six days of 

 calendar time and two days of distance, our present 

 latitude being about two marches farther north than 

 Cape Hecla, our former point of departure. 



When we were far enough out on the ice to be away 

 from the shelter of the land, we got the full force of the 

 violent wind. But it was not in our faces, and as we 

 had a trail which could be followed, even if with heads 

 down and eyes half closed, the wind did not impede 

 us or cause us serious discomfort. Nevertheless, I did 

 not like to dwell upon the inevitable effect which it 

 would have upon the ice farther out — the opening of 

 leads across our route. 



When we dropped off the edge of the glacial fringe 

 onto the pressure ridges of the tidal crack already 

 described, in spite of the free use of our pickaxes and 

 the pickaxes of the pioneer division, which had gone 

 before, the trail was a most trying one for men, dogs, and 

 sledges, especially the old Eskimo type of sledge. The 

 new "Peary" sledges, by reason of their length and 

 shape, rode much more easily and with less strain than 

 the others. Every one was glad to reach the surface 

 of the old floes beyond this crazy zone of ice which was 

 several miles in width. As soon as we struck the old 

 floes the going was much better. There appeared to be 

 no great depth of snow, only a few inches, and this had 

 been hammered fairly hard by the winter winds. Still 

 the surface over which we traveled was very uneven, 

 and in many places was distinctly trying to the sledges, 

 the wood of which was made brittle by the low tempera- 

 ture, now in the minus fifties. On the whole, however, 



