THE WINTER NIGHT 251 



of the crank-handle, perform some of our beautiful pieces, 

 or Johansen would bring out the accordion and play many 

 a fine tune. His crowning efforts were " Oh, Susanna!" 

 and " Napoleon's March Across the Alps in an Open 

 Boat." About midnight we turned in, and then the night 

 watch was set. Each man w^ent on for an hour. Their 

 most trying work on watch seems to have been writing 

 their diaries and looking out, when the dogs barked, for 

 any signs of bears at hand. Besides this, every two 

 hours or four hours the watch had to go aloft or on to 

 the ice to take the meteorological observations. 



I believe I may safely say that on the whole the time 

 passed pleasantly and imperceptibly, and that we throve 

 in virtue of the regular habits imposed upon us. 



My notes from day to day will give the best idea 

 of our life, in all its monotony. They are not great 

 events that are here recorded, but in their very bare- 

 ness they give a true picture. Such, and no other, was 

 our life. I shall give some quotations direct from my 

 diary : 



" Tuesday, September 26th. Beautiful weather. The 

 sun stands much lower now; it was 9° above the hori- 

 zon at midday. Winter is rapidly approaching; there 

 are 14^° of frost this evening, but we do not feel it 

 cold. To-day's observations unfortunately show no par- 

 ticular drift northward ; according to them we are still 

 in 78° 50' north latitude. I wandered about over the 

 floe towards evening. Nothing more wonderfully beau- 



