IV£ SAV GOOD-BYE TO THE '' ERAW 155 



cooker. At last I discovered that some ice had oot in 

 under the Hd, and this had caused a leakage. Finally 

 we got it to light, and at 5 o'clock in the morning the 

 pea-soup was ready, and very good it was. At three in 

 the afternoon I was up again cooking. Thank Heaven, 

 it is warm and comfortable in the bag, or this sort of 

 life would be intolerable ! 



"Sunday, March 31st. Yesterday, at last, came the 

 long-wished-for change of weather, with southerly wind 

 and rising temperature. Early this morning the ther- 

 mometer showed -22"" Fahr. ( — 30" C), regular summer 

 weather, in fact. It was, therefore, with lightened hearts 

 that we set off over good ice and with the wind at our 

 backs. On we went at a very fair pace, and everything 

 was going well, when a lane suddenly opened just in 

 front of the first sledge. We managed to get this over 

 by the skin of our teeth; but just as we were going 

 to cross the lane again after the other sledges, a large 

 piece of ice broke under Johansen, and he fell in, wet- 

 ting both legs — a deplorable incident. While the lane 

 was gradually opening more and more, I went up and 

 down it to find a way over, but without success. Here 

 we were, with one man and a sledge on one side, two 

 sledges and a wet man on the other, with an ever-widen- 

 ing lane between. The kayaks could not be launched, 

 as, through the frequent capsizing of the sledges, they 

 had orot holes in them, and for the time beinq- were use- 

 less. This was a cheerful prospect for the night, I on 



