250 THE VOYAGE OF THE JEAXXETTE. 



moving the bridge wall of steam-cutter's furnace and 

 placing in the furnace sixteen-inch grate bars instead 

 of nine-inch ones. Got steam on the cutter boiler again, 

 and found upon lengthened trial that the alteration be- 

 fore mentioned made it possible to work the rig con- 

 tinuously to main engine bilge-pump, and thus keep 

 the bilge nearly dry. Hauled the fires under the main 

 boiler, ran all the water from it, and drained out all 

 engine and boiler-pipes to prevent their freezing, and 

 pumped the bilge dry with the steam-cutter's rig. 



At last we have succeeded in reducing our fearful ex- 

 penditure of fuel to a reasonable amount ; 400 pounds 

 of coal a day will now run our two steam-pumps, and 

 that is much more comforting than burning 1,000 or 

 1,200 in the main boiler furnaces. Enough water ac- 

 cumulates forward of the water-tight bulkhead to re- 

 quire the steady running of the Baxter rig, and enough 

 gets aft through "between frames" to occupy the 

 steam-cutter's rig continuously. The crew were kept 

 busy all day in trimming down the coal in the after 

 bunkers so as to get a place ready for receiving some 

 of our provisions. With the spar deck and deck-house 

 all lumbered up, we should be in a fearful mess if the 

 ice were to heave us around, and I have concluded 

 to make use of empty coal bunkers as provision rooms. 

 While water is coming into the ship forward we cannot 

 restow in the fore hold or flour-room anything that 

 would be injured by dampness, even if prudence did 

 not dictate keeping those places clear in the event of 

 any fresh mishap. Water continues to mount up be- 

 tween the frames and planking forward of our bulk- 

 head in the fore peak, and trickles out along the berth 

 deck, keeping everything damp and nasty. Ninde- 

 mann and Sweetman keep at work trying to stop this 

 by putting in fresh fillings where old ones have' settled. 



