THE WHITE WORLD 



the red light boxes, left over from some political outburst 

 in our land of the free and home of the brave, were 

 brought on deck and opened, the Diana made her final 

 exit from Etah with all the peculiar and mysterious glories, 

 so far at least as color was concerned, of the classic and 

 time-honored transformation scene. It was all easy and 

 natural enough, and best of all, genuine. We had re- 

 solved doubt and fear, had found Peary and his company 

 well, fortune was auspicious, and we were leaving them 

 thoroughly " well fixed " in body and in mind for the winter 

 and the great attempt of the spring. Why should we not 

 let the world know it; to Peary and to one other at least 

 of the company, the pleasure and significance of the occa- 

 sion were intensified by the parting on the deck of the 

 Falcon. Then was the grim resolution, if not of despair, 

 at least of the never-say-die, American pluck. 



The Erik on the last Wednesday of August, 1901, was 

 laboring around the unnamed point, guarding the northern 

 side of Herschel Bay, on the east side of Smith Sound, and 

 about ten miles south of Peary's headquarters at Payer 

 Harbor. In every direction seaward, only impenetrable 

 ice could be seen, and but a narrow channel of water like a 

 canal, not enough with which to handle the ship with any 

 degree of safety, was available. Four days before, Peary 

 had said to me, " There is evidently an undercurrent of 

 feeling on the ship that you are to remain for the winter; 

 that the Erik cannot free herself from the ice, and that it 

 will be impossible to go home. But I want to assure you 

 that there is not one chance in a hundred of this ; under no 

 circumstances will we take any avoidable risk; we will 

 stand by and work along the shore as far as possible, when 

 if we find that we cannot reach Payer Harbor, we will then 

 land our Eskimo, dogs, meats and supplies, in a safe and 

 accessible camp, and I will do the rest myself." 



Herschel Bay shaped like a horsehoe, and, perhaps, a 

 couple of miles in depth, and half that in breadth, is admir- 

 ably adapted for Peary's purpose, and it was doubly gratify- 

 ing and significant that upon his first reconnoissance on 

 the southeastern point, where he decided to make his 

 camp, he found evidence of former settlement, showing 

 clearly that the place had been, in the old time, inhabited. 



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