208 ANOTHER OBSERVATORY BUILT, Chap. XI. 



Doctor, the Engineer, and the Interpreter in 

 building another observatory, intended for cer- 

 tain monthly magnetic observations. This edi- 

 fice is constructed of snow. Whenever we have 

 a calm night we can hear the crushing sound of 

 the drift-ice in Bellot Strait, which continues 

 0]3en to within 500 yards of the Fox Islands, 

 and emits dark chilling clouds of hateful, pesti- 

 lent, abominable mist. 



The last two days have been very fine and 

 calm : the men visited their fox, and ermine, 

 traps, which are secreted amongst the rocks in a 

 most mysterious manner — one ermine only has 

 been taken. Seven or eight reindeer and 

 some ptarmigan were seen ; two of the latter and 

 a hare were shot. We have commenced brewing 

 sugar beer. 



2nd Nov. — Yery dull times. No amount of 

 ingenuity could make a diary worth the paper 

 it is written on. An occasional raven flies past, 

 a couple more ptarmigan have been shot : an- 

 other N.W. gale is blowing, with temperature 

 down to - 12°. 



&th. — Saturday night. The N.W. gale blew 

 without intermission for seventy hours, the tem- 

 perature being about - 15° : we hoped that our 

 absent shipmates might be housed safely in snow 

 huts. This afternoon all doubts respecting them 



