BLOCKING UP OF THE IIANSA. 103 



and the height 6^ feet in the gable, the side walls being 

 only 4 feet 8 inches high. A firm spot, free from any 

 fracture, was chosen about 450 paces from the ship ; and 

 we had no cause to fear that the floe mio-ht soon break 

 from friction with any other drifting ice-field. Had the 

 house been a greater distance from the ship, the dif&culty 

 of bringing up the heavy materials would have been 

 greater, and thus have retarded the progress of the 

 building. The wor]% began on the 27th of September 

 with the foundations, which here were more ready to 

 hand than on land. With snow-axes and ballast-shovels 

 we then cleared away from the firm mass of ice about a 

 foot and a half of snow. ^Ye had intended to raise the 

 walls with a double row of stones ; but unfortunately had 

 overrated our stock, and were therefore obliged to econo- 

 mize, and only use the 9-inch broad stones up to about 

 two feet, and after that lay them singly. A brook which 

 we had dug in the ice hard by, and which gave us the 

 sweetest of water, also afibrded the most excellent 

 cement. Whilst wall-building on land has to be given 

 up in frosty weather, our building on the contrary pro- 

 gressed the more rapidly. We only needed to strew 

 finely-powdered snow between the gTOOves and cracks,, 

 pour water upon it, and in ten minutes all was frozen to 

 a strong compact mass, from which one single stone 

 would with difiiculty have been extracted ! The roof, for 

 the present, was composed of sail-cloth and some mat- 

 ting, which had by chance been left on the Hansa 

 after her last West Indian voyage. (This was made of 

 reeds, and was laid down in the cabin when company was 

 expected.) The rafters were made out of the spars and 

 staves of tubs ; the first-named were laid crossways upon 



