332 SPITSBERGEN chap, xxiv 



couloir and made step-cutting more difficult. At length we 

 reached the foot of the final tooth, and with some difficulty 

 gained a footing on the rocks. These were very smooth and 

 plastered with ice, whilst the covering of fresh snow obli- 

 terated all hand-holds. After proceeding a short distance 

 Trevor-Battye declared that he had had enough and pro- 

 posed to await our return. I glanced at Bottolfsen, who said 

 nought, but looked things unutterable. 



Under suitable conditions of weather and snow, half-an- 

 hour's climbing would probably have taken me to the top, but 

 the mountain was in no state for solitary climbing, and the 

 weather was as bad as could be. It was snowing again, and 

 only a few feet of the base of the tower were visible through 

 the fog. There was nothing to gain by continuing the ascent, 

 so I read my aneroid, which gave the height as 4400 feet. 

 Scoresby gives the height of the mountain as surveyed from 

 the coast at 4395 feet, and that of the more northerly peak 

 as 3306 feet, while the chart marks the summit at 4480 feet. 

 We agreed at the time that the tower rose about 70 or 80 

 feet above the point where we stopped. I looked at my 

 watch ; it was just 12.30 A.M. 



Turning back, I found my companions had already begun 

 to descend. When we had returned a short way I re- 

 membered a stick we had brought up to leave as a memento 

 of our ascent. We had sacrificed one of our few remaining 

 tent pegs for the purpose, squared it with a knife, and 

 carved our names on three of the sides, and the date on the 

 fourth. It was now deposited as safely as possible on the 

 rocks and the descent continued. 



All went well for a time, but the steps gradually became 

 more difficult to find, so I changed places with Bottolfsen, 

 who had hitherto been leading clown. The position was an 

 awkward one : Bottolfsen had no axe, but only the broken 

 fragment of the pole he had brought up. I left him my axe 



