THE JOURNEY OVER THE PACK ICE 263 



by wide lanes. We did not dare to risk our sledges on it and 

 went out to explore the neighbourhood. But, bad as it looked 

 from our position, we found it even worse than we expected ; 

 the floes were all broken into small pieces and were twisting 

 about, toppling over or standing on end, while the ice looked 

 almost alive, so strong was the movement in it. It was almost 

 impossible to cross the country on foot, and, of course, far more 

 impossible with the sledges, and Mr. Leffingwell and myself 

 returned to our floe, tired and worried as to the immediate 

 future. The sky, heavy with clouds, was like a map, showing 

 the distribution of ice and water far to the south ; it was chiefly 

 dark, over water, with some streaks of white in it, over the ice, 

 all of which bodes no good for us. 



To the south from E.S.E. to W.S.W. there was a very heavy 

 water-sky, so heavy that it looked more like a sky vaulting a 

 summer pack, passable for ships, than a spring sky, reflecting 

 ice which we had to pass with our sledges. From W.S.W. to 

 N.W. the sky was dark, but not so dark as to the south, and 

 was probably reflecting young ice which we could see, while to 

 the east it was all black, with small white patches reflecting the 

 solitary floes which were floating about in almost open water. 

 It was a cheerless outlook, and almost our only consolation 

 was that we had returned when we did. 



To-day we can do nothing but lie still, hoping that the 

 weather will get fairly cold to-night and strengthen the rubble 

 floating about in the larger lanes. It is perfectly safe to cross 

 a lane when the recently broken ice has had time to freeze so 

 much that the small floes do not turn on edge when sledges or 

 men pass. But we have to be careful to keep on the pieces 

 themselves, for the ice between, cementing them together, is 

 so thin that we can run the ice spear through it with a single 

 push. We have crossed lanes as wide as 150 yards over ice 

 of that kind, and no accident has happened as yet, but we have 

 to be very careful, as the ice will open up without any warning, 

 and if the floes on either side of the lane should commence 

 to move it would all be over; the ice would break up into 

 pieces, neither large enough nor solid enough to carry men or 

 sledges. 



We have only made about a quarter to half a mile southing 

 to-day, and are farther from land than yesterday, as the ice 



