THE FRIENDLY ARCTIC 501 



my sprained ankle apart, no one would be surprised at my going 

 off after seals and staying away even longer than ten hours. I 

 next thought that I must have sprained my ankle over again, and 

 then noticed a hot feeling in and about the ankle, but found there 

 was more pain in my hip — the only real pain, apparently merely a 

 bad bruise. I was not stunned. 



"I arose a little stiffly and looked up to find that in falling I 

 had made through the treacherous snow roof of the crevasse a 

 nearly round hole three or four feet across that gave most of the 

 light where I was, though some came through the snow roof of the 

 crack and some doubtless through the ice walls. Later as I 

 crawled along the floor of the crevasse I found the light ten yards 

 away from this hole about enough for reading ordinary book print 

 by a little straining of the eyes. I crawled about thirty yards in 

 the direction in which I knew the hummock was lowest, and came 

 to an opening where the sky showed nine feet above the floor. By 

 cutting steps with my knife I got out here. On standing up and 

 putting on my snowshoes — one badly broken by the fall — I found 

 my foot seemed no worse. I therefore went for the seal and got 

 him without incident at a hundred and thirty-five yards. Luckily 

 Natkusiak was a mile away on a pressure ridge, saw me and came 

 over to help with the seal. On the way home I unluckily slipped 

 once and gave my ankle a wrench that seemed to hurt more than 

 the fall. At home I got pretty stiff and could sleep on one side 

 only. I feel a little less sore now (written 10: A.M., May 23). 

 We shall pass near this cake to-day (May 23) and I shall have 

 the depth of the crack measured. 



"This accident made my arrival home too late for sending 

 Charlie out to sound. The distance I fell was later measured by 

 him at fourteen feet." 



There are several points for reflection about this accident. To 

 me the most interesting was the number of things I could consider 

 in logical sequence while falling and in doubt as to whether I 

 should be drowned or should land on ice ohick enough not to break. 

 But the most remarkable thing is that such an accident should 

 never before or since have happened to me or to any one with 

 whom I have been associated. We fall into cracks often, but with 

 this exception they have always been so narrow that we have been 

 able to catch and support ourselves by our arms. This accident 

 would not have happened now but for my Eskimo-type goggles 

 with their narrow angle of vision that prevented my seeing where 



