238 FARTHEST NORTH 



too, directly. A little while afterwards we heard them 

 again. As we were lying in the bag to-day and waiting 

 for breakfast we suddenly heard a hoarse scream over 

 the tent — somethino" like the croakino- of a crow. I 

 should imagine it must have been a gull {Lams aj'gcn- 

 tatus ?). 



" Is it not curious.^ The whole nioht lono-, whenever 

 I was awake, did the sun smile in to us through our 

 silken walls, and it was so warm and light that I lay and 

 dreamed dreams of summer, far from lanes and drudgery 

 and endless toil. How fair life seems at such moments, 

 and how bright the future ! But no sooner do I turn out 

 to cook at half-past nine than the sun veils his counte- 

 nance and snow begins to fall. This happens nearly every 

 day now. Is it because he will have us settle down here 

 and wait, for the summer and the slackening of the ice 

 and open water will spare us the toil of finding a way 

 over this hopeless maze of lanes .r" I am loath, indeed, 

 that this should come to pass. Even if we could manage, 

 as far as provisions are concerned, by killing and eating 

 the dogs, and with a chance of game in prospect, our 

 arrival in Spitzbergen would be late, and we might not 

 improbably have to pass the winter there, and then those 

 at home would have another year to wait. 



"Sunday, June 2d. So it is on Whitsunday that this 

 book* finishes. I could hardly have imagined that we 



* It was the first diary I used on the sledge journey. 



