148 THE GERMAN AECTIC EXPEDITION. 



boats miglit bo liaulcd empty over three floes ; and tlie 

 whole of the contents were carried after them, partly on 

 sledges and partly on the back, and they were again 

 reladen. In feverish haste and impatience this work was 

 accomplished, and in three hours all was ready. We 

 took one last thankful look at our faithful floe ; through 

 numerous dangers and calamities, from the region of 

 terror and death, it had borne us here in 200 days, into 

 a more hospitable latitude ; and now filled with fresh 

 courage we might hope for a speedy release. 



It was about four p.m. as with three hearty cheers 

 we set sail. The community were divided amongst 

 the boats in the following manner : — The whale-boat, 

 which was commanded by Captain Hegemann, took 

 the two scientific men, the cook, and the sailors 

 Philipp Heine and Bernhard Gatjen. The boat Bis- 

 marck was commanded by the first officer, Hildebrandt ; 

 under him were the two sailors Paul Tilly and Hein- 

 rich Biittner. The large boat King William was com- 

 manded by the second officer. Bade ; and the carpenter, 

 Wilhelm Bowe, Fritz Kewell, Max Schmidt, and 

 Conrad Gierke constituted the crew. We sailed until 

 nine p.m., at first slowly, but after we had stowed away 

 better, more rapidly ; so that upon hauling the boat up 

 on a floe, we had left seven nautical miles behind us. 

 This hauling up was a hard bit of work. After finding a 

 low spot and first emptying the boat, we lifted it on to 

 the floe by swinging it backwards and forwards, and then 

 when it came up the third time, with a strong pull at the 

 painter a part was raised on to the ice, and afterwards 

 the whole was hauled up. The provisions and other 

 equipments of each boat were stacked up close by, and 



