PEARY'S EXPEDITION (1892) 287 



first to the north-east and then to the east. Advancing 

 8 miles, they found themselves hemmed in by a series 

 of huge concentric crevasses, and to cross these it was 

 necessary to take a south-easterly direction. At one 

 time two dogs fell into a crevasse, and at another one of 

 the sledges broke through. 



Next day they covered nearly 18 miles, and on the 

 following one they made 20 § miles. Land was now 

 visible to the north-west, north, and north-east. 



Towards the close of the next march a fiord with high 

 sharp peaks on its northern side came clearly into view. 

 Starting again on the 26th June in a north-east 

 direction, Peary soon changed the course to east true, 

 and then to south-east, so as to avoid a fiord which was 

 seen ahead. Assuming this fiord to be Victoria Inlet, 

 and thinking he could round it, Peary kept on to the 

 south-east till the 1st of July, but still the mountains of 

 the shore were in view. On this day a wide opening, 

 bounded on either side by high vertical cliffs, showed up 

 in the north-east over the summits immediately adjacent 

 to the Inland Ice. Through this opening could be seen 

 neither the reflected ice-blink of distant ice-cap nor the 

 cloud-loom of land. 



Peary now decided to reach this opening and discover 

 whether it looked out into the East Greenland Arctic 

 Ocean. Changing his course to north-east, he made for 

 the red-brown mountains of the strange land. The grade 

 now became so steep that it was necessary to descend 

 diagonally along the slope. 



The highest convex of a crescent moraine which 

 climbed well up into the ice-cap was selected as a landing- 

 place, and after wading many streams, and floundering 

 through a mile of slush which covered the lower portion 

 of the ice, they clambered upon the rocks of the moraine 

 4000 feet above the sea. 



