40 NEAREST THE POLE 



of a strong and bitterly cold north wind which kicked 

 up a very respectable sea and sent the spray flying 

 over our bows, we steamed to Cape Lupton, reaching 

 it at midnight of the 2 2d. While steaming through 

 this open water we passed Thank God Harbour, the 

 winter quarters of Hall's Polaris on our right and 

 Discovery Harbour, the winter quarters of the Dis- 

 covery, and site of Fort Conger, on our left. 



A few miles north of Cape Lupton, while smashing 

 through a narrow tongue of ice, a sudden swirl of the 

 current which at times runs like a mill-race in this 

 deep channel, swept the ice together in a way that I 

 can only liken to the sudden scurry of fallen leaves 

 before an autumn breeze, pinched the Roosevelt be- 

 tween the big cakes, and smashing her against the 

 ice-foot, ground her along its vertical face with a 

 motion and noise like that of a railway car which has 

 left the rails and is bumping along over the ties. 

 Very fortunately for us she scraped into a shallow 

 niche in the ice wall, and was hastily secured with 

 every available line. 



The entire flurry lasted less than five minutes, but 

 in that time the steering gear was almost disabled. 

 The back of the rudder was twisted on the stock, the 

 heavy iron head-bands and fittings broken, and the 

 steel tiller rods snapped. Temporaiy repairs were 

 effected, and as soon as the pressure relaxed we steamed 

 on around Cape Sumner and tied up to the fast ice 

 in Newman Bay under Cape Brevoort, to repair our 

 damaged steering gear and await the opening of a 

 lead across Robeson Channel to Cape Union or vicinity. 



The winter's ice was still intact in the bay, its 



