232 MY ARCTIC JOURNAL 



climbs above the opposite horizon, and circles with him for 

 eight or ten days. 



Sometimes, though rarely, cloud shadows drift across the 

 white expanse, but usually the cloud phenomena are the heavy 

 prophecies or actualities of furious storms veiling the entire 

 sky ; at other times they are merely the shadows of dainty, 

 transparent cirrus feathers. In clearest weather the solitary 

 traveler upon this white Sahara sees but three things outside 

 of and beyond himself — the unbroken, white expanse of the 

 snow, the unbroken blue expanse of the sky, and the sun. In 

 cloudy weather all three of these may disappear. 



Many a time I have found myself in cloudy weather travel- 

 ing in gray space. Not only was there no object to be seen, 

 but in the entire sphere of vision there was no difference in 

 intensity of light. My feet and snow-shoes were sharp and 

 clear as silhouettes, and I was sensible of contact with the 

 snow at every step. Yet as far as my eyes gave me evidence 

 to the contrary, I was walking upon nothing. The space be- 

 tween my snow-shoes was as Hght as the zenith. The opaque 

 light which filled the sphere of vision might come from below 

 as well as above. A curious mental as well as physical strain 

 resulted from this blindness with wide-open eyes, and some- 

 times we were obliged to stop and await a change. 



The wind is always blowing on the great ice- cap, sometimes 

 with greater, sometimes with less violence, but the air is never 

 quiet. When the velocity of the wind increases beyond a 

 certain point it scoops up the loose snow, and the surface of 



