130 THE GERMAN ARCTIC EXPEDITION. 



vatioii for position, and found we were in 66° 47'2' N.L., 

 and 34° 1'5' W.L., so that from tlie 27th of December, 

 that is in twelve days, we had travelled 62^ nautical miles 

 south-west to west three-quarter west. As we lay almost 

 still in the bay, great and small icebergs floated out to 

 sea coming from the north, on the highway from East 

 Greenland to the south. 



On the 9th of January one of the sailors writes thus in 

 his day-book : — 



*' Thursday, 9tli of January, 1 870. Northern Hotel. 

 " The weather in the past night was calm and clear. 

 The moon shone brilliantly ; the northern lights and the 

 stars glittered upon the dead beauty of a landscape of ice 

 and snow. Listening at night, a strange, clear-sounding 

 tone strikes the ear, then again a sound as of some one 

 drawing near with slow and measured steps. We listen — 

 who is it ? All still ! not a breath stirring ! Once more 

 it sounds like a lamentation or a groan. It is the ice; 

 and now it is still, still as the grave, and from the pale 

 glance of the moon the ghastly-outlined coast is seen, 

 from which the giant rocks are looking over to us. Ice, 

 rocks, and thousands of glittering stars. thou wonder- 

 fully ghost-like night of the north ! " 



The days from the 11th to the 15th of January were 

 destined to bring us new horrors. On the 11th, heavy 

 storm from the north-east with driving snow. At six in 

 the morning Hildebrandt, who happened to have the 

 watch, burst in with the alarm, " All hands turn out ! " 

 An indescribable tumult was heard without. With 

 furs and knapsacks all rushed out. But the outer 

 entrance was snowed up ; so to gain the outside quickly 



