INTRODUCTION. 29 



The electroscope-hut, (e) (Fig. 18) was a kind of cupboard on the west wall of the storehouse. In this 

 cupboard, which was ventilated while the observations were being made, observations could be made in 

 almost all kinds of weather. Observations of the electric conductivity of the air were taken three times 

 a day, together with the meteorological observations. If time permitted, observations were moreover 

 made every quarter of an hour during rapid registering. 



As the observations were made, in the hut (e) and were thus not exposed to the full force of 

 the wind, it should be remarked that the observations cannot be directly compared with observations 

 made in other places in the open air. In this case, however, this was of minor importance, as the main 

 object was to obtain the variations in the local electric conditions. Had the observations been made in 

 the open air, only a small number would have been successful. As it was, it was only in the worst 

 weather that the observations had to be suspended. 



The arrangements of the other things is best seen in the detail-map. The only remark to be 

 made in conclusion is that the auroral observations were made from a board that was nailed to the bottom 

 of an empty barrel, which was placed between the dwelling-house and the register-observatory. 



9. A few adventures and occurrences of the expedition are related here. 



Captain Hagerup, accompanied by the members of our expedition, left Tromse on the 24th July; 

 but as the wind was unfavorable, they did not get to sea until the 2yth. 



On the 2nd August, Bell Sound was sighted, but also, at the same time, the ice, which appeared 

 to form an impenetrable barrier. On the yth, it looked as if the ice had become slacker, and at last there 

 was room for the ship to advance a little, though not sufficiently to allow of her getting in to the Axel 

 Islands. She was therefore compelled to seek a haven on the west side of the main island about 

 800 metres from the winter haven. 



Here they remained, passing the time in hunting. On the night of the i2th, an open line was 

 seen in the ice between the islands. A whaling-boat was immediately lowered, and filled with building 

 materials. Two boat-loads were taken ashore. On the way back at 4 in the morning, they only just 

 managed to get the boat back. All hands, except two, were then on shore and worked the two follow- 

 ing days. The observatory for the registering apparatuses was set up on a rocky knoll, small enough 

 for the house to surround it, and thus have a splendid foundation. 



This house was soon put to the proof, for on the iyth there blew such a hurricane, that it was 

 impossible to stand on deck. No attempt to go ashore could be made. The magnetic register-observatory 

 was then finished except for the stones and earth along the walls. It was blown down and broken to 

 splinters. The heavy boarding of which the house was built was torn from the framework, and some 

 of it flung to a distance of more than 100 metres. 



On the 1 8th the wind had gone down, and it was possible to venture ashore. The work of restor- 

 ing the ruined house was started, and at n p. m. it was quite completed and literally loaded with 

 stones, both on the roof and along the walls. The sleepers, moreover, were cemented to the rock. 



The ice had now drifted away, so that the ship could be taken into a safe harbour. On the igth, 

 the instruments were brought ashore, and on the 2oth the installation of the magnetic apparatuses was 

 begun, and was completed without any accident. 



The instruments were considerably out of order, but everything was capable of being put right. 

 The balance for the determination of variations in the vertical intensity occasioned some trouble, but that 

 too was set right. On the 2gth, the registering was begun regularly, slight changes being made subse- 

 quently ; and the work at this comparatively poorly equipped station was executed to my entire satisfaction. 



It may serve to give some idea of the peculiar difficulties with which the expedition to Spitsbergen 

 had to contend, if we begin by describing a stormy period such as there were a score of during the 

 time the expedition lasted, most of them in the winter. 



