SAND-STORMS OF THE SAHARA. 
283 
each end of the berth-deck, distributed their heat 
among officers and seamen alike. We had of course 
a community of all manner of odors ; and as our only 
direct ventilation was by the gangway, we had the 
certainty of a sufficient diversity of temperatures. 
The exemption from gales, that has attracted the 
notice of other travelers in this region, had not yet 
been confirmed by our experience. On the contrary, 
our approach to Lancaster Sound, and the earlier part 
of our drift after we entered it, were marked by fre- 
quent storms. Some of these had all the sublimity 
that could belong to a mingled sense of danger and 
discomfort. They reminded me of the sand-storms of 
the Sahara. " The fine particles of snow flew by us 
in a continuous stream. "When they met the unpro- 
tected face, the sensation was like the puncture of nee- 
dles. Standing under the lee of our brig, and watch- 
ing the drift as it scudded on the wings of the storm 
through the interval between the two vessels, the lines 
