696 APPENDIX 



leaving only a comparatively insignificant part of them discerni- 

 ble, while the lower parts may be very large. It was precisely 

 this description of fl,oe that blocked the channel against us. 

 They were so tough that it was useless to try to break them 

 with the stem of the vessel, although we repeatedly made at 

 them with full speed. We could plainly see how the tough old 

 ice bent and rose up at the shock without breaking. The blast- 

 ing of such floes was frequently impracticable, as the}- were of 

 such a thickness that we were unable to lay the mine under 

 them. And even if we succeeded in blowing up one of these 

 floes we gained little or nothing, as the channel was too narrow 

 to allow the pieces to float astern, and they were too heavy and 

 thick to be forced beneath the solid edge of ice. 



Occasionally it happened that old, thick ice suddenly emerged 

 from beneath the water in a channel or opening which we were 

 just about to pass into, thus blocking up the passage before us. 

 On one of these occasions the Frain received a blow in the ribs 

 that hardly any other vessel would have withstood. As we 

 were passing through an open channel I saw from the crow's- 

 nest one end of a large submerged floe appearing above the edge 

 of the solid ice, and I immediately gave orders to steer clear so 

 as to pass round it. But at the very moment when we reckoned 

 to clear it the floe was released, and came to the surface with 

 such a rush that the spray rose high into the air and struck the 

 Fram at the fore-rigging on the starboard side with such tre- 

 mendous force that the ship lurched violently and fell about 10 

 points out of her course, until she ran up against some small 

 floes. When the monster floe emerged it lifted a huge mass of 

 water and sent it like a roaring cataract out into the channel. 



Something similar happened when we occasionally touched a 

 drifting hummock that was just on the point of rolling over, 

 owing to the quicker melting of the ice below the water-line. 

 The slightest push would be enough to capsize the hummock 

 and turn it over in such a violent way that the sea around us 

 would become as agitated as during a storm. 



On August 9th we worked the whole day clearing the chan- 

 nel, but onlv made slight headwav. On the loth the work was 



