EQUIPMENT OF A SLEDGE EXPEDITION 173 



and the canvas cover for the raft was thrown over the sides of 

 the tent, so that they were double as well. 



Besides making the tent considerably warmer, this double 

 cover prevented the forming of hoarfrost inside it, caused by 

 the breathing of men and the steam generated by the cooking. 

 It saved us a good deal of moisture as well in the sleeping 





SHOWING THE WIND-BREAK IN FRONT OF OUR TENT. 



bags as in our furs, as this fine hoarfrost falls with the 

 slightest motion of the tent cover and forces its way down 

 the necks of the occupants of the tent or down the wide open 

 mouths of the sleeping bags. 



Our tent was warm, nay, everything taken into consideration, 

 very warm. When meals were being cooked and the Primus 

 stove going full blast, the temperature is known to have gone 

 up to 8 C., while outside it was 25 C. It is evident that 

 things dry fast when hung in the right places, and we always 

 managed to keep our things dry, clothing as well as sedge 

 grass. 



Another contrivance, adding very much to the warmth and 

 cosiness of the tent, was the construction of a wind-break. It 

 was built of large blocks of snow, one or two feet from the 

 windward side of the tent, and usually made a little wider than 

 the front of the tent. It broke the wind in a most marked 

 manner, making the drifting snow pack round the tent like a 

 thick and warm blanket. We derived great comfort from it, 



