UNDER THE MIDNIGHT SUN. 367 



place (about five miles from the ship) at which our last 

 one was killed. This is the first young bear that we 

 have had, and we shall no doubt find his tender flesh 

 quite a treat. The circumstances of the capture are 

 curious. Alexey had taken out the liver of the last 

 bear upon its capture and left it on the ice. The young 

 bear had taken it off to some rough ice, and while hold- 

 ing it in his fore paws had fallen asleep, in which condi- 

 tion he was found and fell a prey to Alexey's rifle. 



May 26th, Wednesday. — A subsidence of the winds 

 to light airs and calms. The effect, however, has been 

 so good that I could almost wish for a continuance of 

 the wind ; for since the noon of the 21st it has drifted us 

 forty-two miles to N. W. (roughly). It had another ef- 

 fect. It has blown so much snow across the face of the 

 floes as to cut them like a sand-blast, and has permitted 

 the direct action of the sun on the surface, so that in 

 the afternoon there are signs of thawing and wasting. 

 All black substances, like ashes and refuse, sink rapidly 

 into the ice, and are now an appreciable distance below 

 the surface ; and the wdiite and black bulb thermome- 

 ters on the port side of the ship show respectively to- 

 day 70° and 72°. 



3Iay 21th, Thursday. — The boiler tube-pump is com- 

 pleted and in place, and it works to a charm. We have 

 now means of pumping the ship by the windmill in all 

 sorts of winds : from four to ten miles, by connecting 

 the boiler tube-pump ; from ten to fifteen miles, by con- 

 necting the shifted bilge-pump ; and above fifteen miles 

 with the same pump, reducing the sail surface. The 

 whole subject reflects great credit on Melville, who 

 designed, and Sweetman and Lee, who constructed, re- 

 spectively, the wooden and iron parts. Our " windmill 

 pumping apparatus" is worthy of being handed down 

 to posterity. 



