I30 NEAREST THE POLE 



tail " clouds, then banks of fog, flurries of snow, and blue 

 sky again, with a continuous light W, S. W. wind carry- 

 ing a low drift along the surface. For several hours 

 there was a fog bank, probably caused by open leads. 



It was well that I had discounted the loss of my 

 provisions at the lead. Soon after midnight, my 

 two men returned reporting that they had lost the 

 trail beyond the first igloo south of where we were, 

 and had been stopped by open water and completely 

 shattered ice extending as far as they could see from 

 the highest pinnacles. 



It was evident that I could no longer count in the 

 slightest degree upon my supporting parties, and that 

 whatever was to be done now, must be done with 

 the part}^ the equipment, the supplies which I had 

 with me. Unfortunately the party was larger than 

 it need be (eight of us in all), and the supplies much 

 smaller than I could have wished. I gave my men 

 their supper and turned over for another nap while 

 they obtained a few hours' sleep. I had no occasion 

 to think or worry, I knew already what I should do 

 in this contingency. 



Early in the morning we started after abandoning 

 everything which we did not absolutely need, and I 

 bent every energy to setting a record pace. In the 

 legacy of irretrievable damage which the storm had 

 left us was one small codicil of good. Such snow as the 

 wind had not torn from the face of the floes was beaten 

 and banked hard, and the snow which had fallen had 

 been hammered into the areas of rough ice and the 

 shattered edges of the big floes, so that they gave us 

 little trouble. North of Storm Camp we had no 

 occasion for snowshoes or pickaxes. 



