246 THE VOYAGE OF THE JEANNETTE. 



the deck-house and on the quarter deck. The berth 

 deck was damp, considerable moisture standing on the 

 beams overhead. Until this injury to the ship the crew 

 always had the deck-house to go to for a change, but 

 now most of the time has to be passed on the berth 

 deck because the deck-house is full. With a tempera- 

 ture ranging between minus 40° and minus 47° they 

 cannot be sent out for very long from the ship, and as 

 there is no open water we have no seals to occupy our 

 attention. Read divine service in the cabin. 



We are being favored with beautiful weather. It is 

 so long since we have had a strong wind that I cannot 

 remember when we had our last. The sun shows up 

 brightly day after day, the daylight grows longer stead- 

 ily, lasting now from seven a. m. to five p. m., the nights 

 are bright with starlight, the ice seems quiet, and were 

 it not for cold snaps that keep us shut up, w^e should 

 get over many a mile of ice in exercise, in celebration 

 of our farewell to our Arctic night. Chipp and myself 

 still stand our twelve-hour watches ; he from four 

 A. M. to four p. M., and I from four p. m. to four A. M. 

 This is rather wearing, for it obliges me to turn part of 

 our day into night in order to get enough sleep, but as 

 Danenhower is still hors de coinbat, there is no one to 

 make share it — unless I include Dunbar, and I do not 

 do so, because, in the critical condition of things I am 

 of opinion that some one should be around at all times 

 wdth full authority to act promptly and decidedly, and 

 the fewer people have that authority the better. 



The day began and continues clear and pleasant, but 

 with considerable haze around the horizon. Winds be- 

 ginning at N. W. back to W. Barometer begins 29-93 

 and rises to 30.04 ; the temperature begins minus 42°, 

 and by nine A. m. reaches minus 49.5°, when mercurial 



