FAST. 
73 
to warp our way through the impacted ice, we found, 
after much labor, that the entire day’s reward was 
about three miles. We are now again fast, complete- 
ly ‘beset,’ and only waiting to rest the crew before 
we renew our efforts.” 
What these efforts were it may be as well to ex- 
plain, for the benefit of fireside navigators, and perhaps 
some others. Those who go down to the sea in ships 
know that it is easy enough to drive along in a clear 
sea on a free wind, or to haul into dock, or to warp up 
a quiet river, butting aside the lazy vessels as they 
swing at anchor. How do we sail, and haul, and 
warp in these Arctic Seas ! It is a long story, and, to 
understand it, we must begin at the beginning. 
HUMMOCKS. 
I have already described that enormous winter 
growth which, under the name of the “ great pack,” 
blocks up the entire waters of this region from the un- 
known North to the marginal influences of the Gulf 
Stream. What is this “ middle” pack, into whose 
eastern margin we had now thrust ourselves ? 
The short but ardent summer of the Arctic zone, 
with its continuous sun, aided by a rapid drift toward 
the Atlantic Ocean, and by compensating currents 
