VOYAGE OF THE JEANNETTE (1880) 149 



injury. On examination it was found that the water 

 already stood 3 ft. in the forehold. 



The deck-pumps were at once manned, and fortunately 

 were able to keep the water in check until steam could be 

 raised to work the steam-pump. This was a serious drain 

 on the small supply of coal, but Melville was equal to 

 every emergency. He ultimately succeeded in pumping 

 by means of a windmill. Every effort was made to stop 

 the leak, and although partly successful, pumping had to 

 be resorted to more or less continuously throughout the 

 remainder of the cruise. Nindemann and Sweetman 

 took turns about in standing in the water in the fore- 

 peak building a bulkhead across it. For this work they 

 received high commendation from De Lono;. 



On the 26th January they had the pleasure of welcom- 

 ing the reappearance of the sun. On the 1st of February 

 a bear was killed, and as no fresh meat had been available 

 for some time, this was a welcome addition to the stock 

 of food. Another bear was killed on the 2nd, and when 

 the stomach was examined it was found to contain only a 

 few small stones. 



On 6th March 1880 the position of the ship was 

 72° 12' N., 175° 30' W., which was only 26' north and 

 6' east of the position on the 15th September 1879. This 

 proves the absence of a definite current. The depth of 

 water varied from 30 to 40 fathoms, and the bottom 

 usually consisted of blue mud. On the 20th March, 

 De Long stated that he was now convinced that the 

 drifting during the winter had been entirely caused by 

 the winds, and not by any current. During March the 

 north side of Wrangel Land was frequently visible. 



On the 1st of May the sun could be seen at midnight. 

 On the 5th May the position was found to be 73° 11' 

 24" N., 179° 37'" 30" E., indicating a considerable drift 

 since the beginning of March. It also showed that the 



