ONE DAY FROM POLE 285 



which, reducing the friction of the sledges, gave the 

 dogs the appearance of having caught the high spirits 

 of the party. Some of them even tossed their heads 

 and barked and yelped as they traveled. 



Notwithstanding the grayness of the day, and the 

 melancholy aspect of the surrounding world, by some 

 strange shift of feeling the fear of the leads had fallen 

 from me completely. I now felt that success was cer- 

 tain, and, notwithstanding the physical exhaustion 

 of the forced marches of the last five days, I went 

 tirelessly on and on, the Eskimos following almost 

 automatically, though I knew that they must feel 

 the weariness which my excited brain made me 

 incapable of feeling. 



When we had covered, as I estimated, a good fif- 

 teen miles, we halted, made tea, ate lunch, and rested 

 the dogs. Then we went on for another estimated 

 fifteen miles. In twelve hours' actual traveling time 

 we made thirty miles. Many laymen have wondered 

 why we were able to travel faster after the sending 

 back of each of the supporting parties, especially after 

 the last one. To any man experienced in the handling 

 of troops this will need no explanation. The larger the 

 party and the greater the number of sledges, the greater 

 is the chance of breakages or delay for one reason or 

 another. A large party cannot be forced as rapidly 

 as a small party. 



Take a regiment, for instance. The regiment 

 could not make as good an average daily march for a 

 number of forced marches as could a picked company 

 of that regiment. The picked company could not make 

 as good an average march for a number of forced 



