CHAPTER XLVL 



THE COMMANDANT'S HERMIT LIFE. 



' ON March 13, 1900, at eight in the morning, Captain Sverdrup 

 and Fosheim started on their journey, and I reckon that my 

 hermit's life began from that time, as until then I had not been 

 a whole day alone, the trip west taken by my two companions 

 being only from the morning of the one day to the afternoon of 

 the next. Hitherto also I had had my own team for company, 

 and they had honestly done their best to provide me with distrac- 

 tions in the shape of cheery little fights, eating their harness, 

 howling in chorus, and the like innocent canine amusements. 

 But now my solitude was about to begin in earnest, and it was 

 not without mixed feelings that I saw Fosheim harness my dogs 

 I could not free myself of the idea that he was rather encroaching 

 on my domain. A little while afterwards the two sledges, which 

 drove off to the east, were lost to sight in the very strong drift 

 there was at the time. 



' I was now left to my own forces and resources, and they were 

 by no means to be despised. First and foremost was the " castle " 

 itself, a square canvas hut six feet long and four high, warm and 

 comfortable; both the roof, which was flat, and the floor being 

 covered with the sad remains of " Fort Juliana." My residence, 

 however, was not quite complete, for it had been planned that it 

 was to have a wall of snow round it. Happily for me, I had begun 

 on this the previous day, as otherwise the hut not being provided 

 with guy-ropes the strong wind which sprang up during the night 

 would probably have turned the house inside out. Even now the 

 wind was still very violent, and I therefore set to work at once to 

 finish the wall. It was done by about two o'clock, and as the wind 



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