1 6 FARTHEST NORTH 



these preparations, which also kept many of the others 

 pretty busy during the winter. Mogstad, for instance, 

 found steady employment in making sledges and fitting 

 them with runners, etc. Sverdrup busied himself in 

 making sleeping-bags and many otiier things. Juell was 

 appointed dog-tailor, and when he was not busy in the 

 eallev, his time was devoted to takino- the measurements 

 of the does, makinij harness for them and testinfr it. 

 Blessing, too, fitted up for us a small, light medicine-chest, 

 containing selected drugs, bandages, and such other things 

 as might be of use. One man was constantly employed 

 in copying out all our journals and scientific observations, 

 etc., etc., on thin paper in a contracted form, as I wanted, 

 by way of doubly assuring their preservation, to take a 

 copy of them along with me. Hansen was occupied in 

 preparing tabular forms necessary for our observations, 

 curves of the movement of our chronometers, and other 

 such things. Besides this, he was to make a complete 

 chart of our voyage and drifting up to the present time. 



I could not, however, lay too great a claim on his 

 valuable time, as it was necessary that he should con- 

 tinue his scientific observations without interruption. 

 During this autumn he had greatly increased the com- 

 fort of his work by building, along with Johansen, an 

 observation-hut of snow, not unlike an Eskimo cabin. 

 He found himself very much at his ease in it, with a 

 petroleum lamp hanging from the roof, the light of which, 

 being reflected by the white snow walls, made quite a 



