THE WHITE WORLD 



the ice blink is distinguished by spans or bands of light 

 just above the horizon. These are the result of the reflec- 

 tion of an ice pack, and forebode much trouble ahead. The 

 crow's nest is certainly a wonderful help and instructor to 

 any commander of an Arctic expedition. 



Torpedoes, to blow up the ice, were on the whole found 

 rather disappointing. Their action was chiefly local, and 

 no absolute reliance could be placed upon them. We car- 

 ried explosives both of gunpowder and of gun-cotton. 

 The former was found to be by far the more efficacious. 

 On one occasion, however, it must be said that torpedoes 

 proved to be of great service. This was when the Thetis 

 was off Cape Athol, attempting to gain the open water of 

 Wolstenholme Sound. In ramming her way through the 

 ice, she found herself stuck fast in a wedge. She could 

 move neither forward nor backward. The pressure of the 

 ice was not severe, but it simply would not yield. Torpe- 

 does of both gunpowder and gun-cotton were placed ahead 

 and on both sides of the ship, about ten or twelve yards 

 away. The explosion broke up the jam and permitted the 

 ship to continue on her way through the ice pack. 



Our dogs were of great advantage to us, indeed indis- 

 pensable. We had taken eighteen Labrador dogs on board 

 at St. John's. In addition to these, at Godhavn we pur- 

 chased from the governor a team of seven trained Eskimo 

 dogs. The Labrador dog is as a rule much more satis- 

 factory and tractable than the Greenland one. He is a 

 water dog and can swim, while the other must be carried 

 from floe to floe. All the dogs have enormous appetites, 

 but the Eskimo refuses to work after eating, while the Lab- 

 rador dog is ready to buckle to at any time. They are all 

 extremely savage, being more like wolves than dogs. If a 

 man slips and falls upon the ice, they will leap upon him 

 at once. 



Among the Eskimo dogs, there is always a king; that is 

 the one who, after repeated fights, has proved the strongest; 

 and when his kingship is once established, all the pack 

 yield to him and give him the most abject obedience. A 

 growl is his signal, and woe to him who does not at once 

 respond to it. 



We had one peculiar specimen of a dog that we obtained 



