THE SHIP AT LAST 427 



through open leads between the ice-pans. It was only 

 three miles, but it required four hours of hard work 

 to accomplish the journey. Sometimes when strong 

 gusts of wind struck us it seemed that we should have 

 to give up the attempt and await further abatement 

 of the storm. 



The mountains here rise about five thousand feet 

 above the sea, and in many places are almost perpen- 

 dicular. All over the mountain-side in every direc- 

 tion torrents of water poured in great streams into 

 the harbor. Constantly landslides were starting. 

 Great boulders larger than the boat, loosened far 

 up upon the heights, would crash thousands of feet 

 down, loosening other boulders in their descent, and 

 at the bottom shoot fifteen or twenty feet out into 

 the bay with a loud splash. We were compelled, 

 therefore, to keep well off shore to avoid danger of 

 being struck by them. 



I was looking forward to a good dry bed when- we 

 finally reached camp at Etah, but to my chagrin 

 found my bed, extra blankets, everything, in fact, 

 around the place, completely soaked. Nothing had 

 been spared from the storm. When I got into bed 

 water kept dripping upon my face from the canvas 

 roof of the shack, and I arose and tied a tin can 

 under each leak. I thought I had stopped the an- 

 noyance and turned in again, but it was no use. In 

 a little while drip, drip, began from new leaks, and 

 I gave up in despair. Through the whole twenty- 

 four hours after our return wind continued, with 

 heavy rain in the valley and snow on the mountain- 



