Position of the Ship. 109 



an inordinate degree, over the delicate morsels 

 that are carried away on the water from the ship 

 or fish during that process. 



Tracks of bears were seen on the floe during 

 the afternoon, but Bruin very wisely abstained 

 from putting in an appearance. 



Sunday, June 8th, was ushered in by a bright 

 sun, of which I took advantage to land on the floe 

 with my artificial horizon, and determine the posi- 

 tion of the ship by double and single altitudes. I 

 find Captain George's artificial horizon 1 a very 

 useful and portable instrument, and well adapted 

 for these regions, in consequence of the very 

 simple method by which the mercury is trans- 

 ferred from the bottle to the trough and vice versa : 

 no easy task with the common roof horizon, when 

 the temperature is several degrees below the 

 freezing point. To-day the thermometer was as 

 low as 25°. 



Shortly before noon, the captain seeing what he 

 considered a good lead, though separated from us 

 by a broad stream of ice, determined upon boring 

 his way through. Steam was raised, the ice 

 anchors taken on board, and at the apparently 

 unyielding ice we went full speed. Men were 



1 Supplied by Messrs. Gould and Porter (successors to 

 Gary), of 181, Strand. All the instruments supplied from this 

 firm I found very good. 



