GEOGRAPHICAL PROGRESS. 



273 



journey they traveled across a large peninsula 

 southeast of the fiord. Baumann was in com- 

 mand of the returning party. After they left 

 us they experienced very stormy and cold weath- 

 er, and several were frostbitten in the face and 

 on the hands on their arrival at Bjorneborg. 

 From there they had accompanied Schei to the 

 north point of North Kent, after which they 

 went on board. In May Baumann with his party 

 made some investigations to find a passage over- 

 land, whereby the sound might be avoided. We 

 knew, of course, that it would be impossible to 

 pass on our return. He deposited information at 

 the agreed place north of the sound. On my 

 return to the Fram I learned that the vessel was 

 nearly destroyed by fire on one of the last days 

 of May. The awning had been ignited by a spark 

 from the funnel and was soon enveloped in 

 flames. The kayaks stored under it, as well as 

 other inflammable things, burned violently. The 

 main rigging and the mast caught fire. Fortu- 

 nately, it occurred in the middle of the day, while 

 there were plenty of people on the deck. Along 

 the side of the vessel we had water enough for 

 extinguishing the fire, and we succeeded in sub- 

 duing it. 



" The summer work began with scrapings, at 

 first through cracks in the ice, afterward at vari- 

 ous places. Gradually the ice broke up. Aug. 9 

 we steamed out from our winter quarters, steer- 

 ing westward along Jones Sound. On the 16th 

 we got fast in the ice north of Grinnell Island. A 

 heavy northerly breeze kept the ice tightly to- 

 gether. We remained here till Sept. 16, when the 

 southerly gales dispersed the ice. We then pro- 

 ceeded down through Cardigan strait and took 

 up our winter quarters in the fiord next to the 

 sound, latitude 76 48' north, and longitude 89 

 west of Greenwich. We shot this autumn 28 

 musk-oxen, and, as last autumn, a number of 

 hares. The passage we now used to the coast 

 northward went across a neck of land about 600 

 feet high. The place where we got down to the 

 sea we called Nordstrand. After the autumn 

 hunting was completed Olsen and I were to pro- 

 ceed up to the large fiords north. Olsen, on the 

 way, fell and got his arm out of joint at the 

 shoulder. As the wind was too strong for a trav- 

 eling tent to be pitched, we had to go back to 

 Nordstrand. I placed Olsen in a tent, but my at- 

 tempts to set the arm right were in vain. The 

 storm lasted three days. Two of my best dogs 

 were choked by the snow, and one I lost on the 

 hunting expedition last autumn. The fourth day 

 we went on board and put Olsen's arm right. 

 In xthe winter we were much visited by wolves, 

 and we had enjoyable wolf hunts in the silent 

 hours of the night. We captured a few alive. 

 On March 12, 1901, two parties went out, each 

 consisting of four men, to lay down depots. The 

 mean temperature was minus 45 C. ; some days 

 it was even below minus 50. April 8 all parties 

 set out, Isaachsen and Hassel westward, Fos- 

 heim, Raaniis, Schei, and I northward, Baumann 

 and Henriksen accompanying us a little distance 

 north of the depot. Thereupon we proceeded far- 

 ther northward, but found ourselves at the bot- 

 tom of this system of fiords. When we could 

 find no reasonable land passages we turned back 

 and entered a fiord immediately north of this 

 system. On April 26 we reached the bottom of 

 this fiord. Here we found a fairly good passage 

 northward, where we got down to the sea on 

 April 29. This was that system of fiords which 

 had been traversed by two parties last year. On 

 May 1 we saw from latitude 79 north, in very 

 clear weather, that there was still some sea ice 

 VOL. XLII. 18 A 



outside the sound. We continued northward. 

 On May 4 I despatched Fosheim and Raaniis 

 across to follow the eastern land, whereas Schei 

 and I continued along the western. At latitude 

 80 30' the land turned westward; on the west 

 side of the sound we followed the latter, but 

 found ourselves very soon in rough polar ice. As 

 the weather now became very stormy and foggy, 

 we had to turn, sacrificing the rest of the season, 

 to the piece traversed and southward, from where 

 not a few fiords are running into the land. On 

 May 17 we were roused at night by an awful 

 howling of the dogs. When we came on deck 

 we found 12 wolves, which were on the point of 

 carrying away one dog of my pack. When we 

 fired at them and some of the wolves were 

 killed the rest ran away rapidly. The dogs 

 were quite helpless, as they had muzzles on. On 

 June 18 we arrived at the Fram. Isaachsen and 

 Haslund found, in about latitude 78 north, a 

 sound separating North Cornwall from the track 

 of land to the north. We traveled through this 

 sound, following the south coast of the land, 

 north of North Cornwall westward and then 

 northward. Then we continued along the land 

 in a northwesterly direction, latitude 79 30' 

 north, and longitude 106 west, when the land 

 turned eastward and southward. On the west 

 coast no land could be seen westward, and on 

 the northern coast nothing to the north either, 

 only rough polar ice. These tracts of land are 

 rather low, the highest not reaching over 1.000 

 feet. Bears were shot on the south coast; rein- 

 deer could be seen, and appeared to be plentiful. 

 Isaachsen then went southward and eastward. 

 These islands were explored all round, after 

 which Isaachsen traveled down on Graham Is- 

 lands, and across to Ellesmere Land; he came 

 on board on June 7. 



" Baumann and Stoltz left the Fram on April 

 24 to investigate more closely the system of 

 fiords, into which I first entered this spring. It 

 was proved on this trip that the neighborhood 

 of these fiords is probably the part of Ellesmere 

 Land most abounding in game. Musk-oxen, 

 reindeer, and wolves are very plentiful. Fosheim 

 and Raaniis had explored a fiord about 70 miles 

 long, which runs in from Greely fiord in a south- 

 easterly direction. 



" The whole of this summer appeared very un- 

 favorable for getting out of the ice. We tried 

 blasting, etc., but to no purpose. Then we tried 

 to force a passage along the land at every high- 

 water, as the ice there would always be somewhat 

 slack. In this way we succeeded in advancing 9 

 miles southward, but after touching the ground 

 several times we did not get out. We now had 

 to procure food for the dogs during the winter. 

 Two hunting parties in Jones Sound got about 

 20 walruses, which proved sufficient. Bay re- 

 mained on guard at the meat until the ice be- 

 came thick enough for it to be conveyed on 

 board. On a very dark night in October he was 

 surprised by a bear. He tried to get out, but his 

 sweater caught something in the door, so he 

 could not move. However, he fired his rifle. 

 At dawn he crept out and found the bear lying 

 dead not far away. After the walrus hunting, 

 two parties were despatched northward to pro- 

 cure fresh meat for the winter. They shot about 

 18 musk-oxen, which were transported on board; 

 then the walruses were brought on board, and 

 the excursions were at an end Nov. 4, 1901. 



" Isaachsen and Bay explored the north coast of 

 North Devon from April. 23 to May 22, where- 

 upon Isaachsen and Simmons made a twenty- 

 four days' sledge excursion in order to fetch 



