AN AllCTIO WINTEK. 393 



the golden mirror of the sea. Forms and colours are 

 tinged with gloom ; a universal winding-sheet enwraps 

 every form of nature, over which broods the icy night ; the 

 stars, twinkling brightly, shed their cold light ; ghost-like 

 stand out the shadowy snowy walls of the mountains from 

 the black edge of the rock ; sullenly rise the crested rocks 

 in the night ; snow-flakes glide in noiseless monotony on to 

 the still cold earth, and on to the ice-deck, which has 

 bound our ship for months. The deck is laden with 

 snow ; masts and yards stretch their coal-black arms to 

 heaven ; frost hangs to the ropes in tender crystal webs ; 

 the helm is buried under blocks of ice." We easily lose 

 ourselves in a feeling of utter desertion in the midst of 

 these lifeless surroundings, and the heavy leaden-grey of 

 the sky is reflected in our painfully-oppressed spirits. One 

 must be more than mortal not to be occasionally over- 

 come by such feelings, though with us they were but of 

 short duration ; besides which, the time of perpetual 

 darkness was quickly drawing to a close. That we 

 proved the next day, when in — 22° we were surrounded 

 by a bright light sky, with numerous and beautiful 

 pictures of Arctic light. The noonday twilight was so 

 strong that for an hour we fancied it was really day- 

 light, and on the 10th, at seven a.m., the beginning of 

 dawn in the eastern sky proved it to be correct. This 

 fine, clear weather lasted to the 16th, and was highly 

 acceptable to the astronomers : the cold, however, in- 

 creased, and the thermometer sank to —26.50° Fahr. 



It was already settled that, as soon as practicable 

 — we thought about the beginning of March — our great 

 journey should begin, geography being its main object, 

 by following the coast-line northward, thus accomplishing 



