80 



THE LAST CRUISE OF THE MIRANDA. 



with tne intention of coming back as soon as the storm was 

 over. Later it began to rain in real dead earnest. That 

 night was one of the most uncomfortable I have ever spent. 

 Our tent had been injudiciously pitched on a side-hill, and so 

 a small waterfall percolated through the mossy floor. Green- 

 land moss makes an excellent bed when dry, but when it 

 rains it quickly becomes like a wet sponge. We could make 

 no fire, because there was nothing to burn except moss, 

 which at the time was impossible, and the night was very 



cold. We had a 

 little oil-stove, 

 which we kept 

 going until it 

 burned out ; but 

 this did not help 

 matters much. 

 The tent's roof 

 was so wet that 

 great drops fell 

 on our upturned 

 faces as we lay 

 huddled together 

 .in the middle of 

 the camp, and I 

 could push my 

 boot down in the 

 wet moss and 

 hear the water 

 gurgle. There 

 was not much 

 sleep that night for anybody. We fell to talking about 

 comfortable waterproof beds in order to divert our minds. 

 " Did you ever sleep in two empty flour barrels ? " remarked 

 Clark, whose experiences seemed to have been varied. " No," 



CARL AND HIS TWO BEST GIRLS. 



