THE VOYAGE OVER THE PACK ICE 199 



other cheerful subject, but it is not always easy, and conversa- 

 tion flags. We have each a small book Hamlet and King 

 Lear and the reading and discussing mysterious passages help 

 to pass many an hour which otherwise would be spent talking 

 over our gloomy prospects, the result of which would invariably 

 be to make us, if possible, still more despondent than we already 

 are. Towards the middle of the day we frequently look at the 

 watch to see whether the time for lunch is approaching, so that 

 we can start cooking, and usually during such days we begin 

 to cook earlier than we should. It is a fine sensation to have 

 the lamp burning; it warms the tent so that we can sit up 

 without mittens ; it melts the small ice particles on the walls 

 of our tent and makes it a really pleasant abode. It is wonder- 

 ful what change a fire will make and how quickly we feel better 

 after it has been lighted. When the lunch is ready we fall to, 

 and it disappears only too fast. Then a little sleep, followed by 

 telling each other our dreams, which takes quite a long time, 

 and then more reading or brooding. The increasing unrest 

 among the dogs, the frequent fights, etc., show that their 

 feeding time is drawing near, and the man nearest the door 

 has to attend to this unpleasant work. First he has to get on 

 his kamicks, the only thing which we usually take off while in 

 our bags, then the overall has to be put on, tied well round 

 ankles and wrists to prevent the snow from penetrating, and 

 when all this is done he has to go out in the cold, in the wind 

 and drifting snow. The dogs are waiting for him and set up a 

 howl of delight when he comes, jump round him, trying to lick 

 him, and showing their delight in every possible way. Then 

 comes an awful noise as the food is divided, and the last dogs 

 are afraid that nothing will be left for them. An ominous 

 quiet follows the barks and howls ; we in the tent know that 

 the dogs are now eating and have no time for growling. But 

 peace does not continue long. A yelp of pain breaks the 

 silence; a rush of feet, barking, howling, and yelping from 

 the dogs, and bad language from the man, inform us inside 

 the tent that one dog, having finished his own ration, wants 

 to steal a smaller dog's share, which again results in a great 

 fight, and the whip is applied vigorously until order is at last 

 restored. Then the man's return to the tent is announced 

 by his tramping and brushing the snow off his clothes, and a 



