AL/FOKNIA 
 
 BANCROFT 
 LIBRARY 
 
 THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
vff': 
 


 

ESTABLISHING DEPOTS. 231 
 
 floe was covered with a light covering of snow, just deep enough 
 to require the men to plough their way and to demand every 
 atom of their strength to pull the sledge through it. Occasion 
 ally a bare descending bit of ice came, just enough in extent to 
 force the exhausted men for a few yards into an accelerated 
 pace and give emphasis to the jerk which, as snow came to 
 clog the runners, a moment later brought all up standing. After 
 nearly nine hours of such travel, Sergeant Brainard concluded 
 that the condition of the men was such as to render camping 
 necessary, as continued pulling without food or drink in such 
 low temperatures had quite exhausted them. The temperature, 
 then at -43.5 (-41.9 C.), had not been above -40 (-40 
 C.) during the march. 
 
 An order to camp is obeyed with alacrity, not that it is a 
 comfortable or pleasant thing to do, but because work of any 
 character is preferable to standing quietly around. The only 
 continued comfort for an Arctic sledger is while he is engaged 
 in the drag-ropes hauling a fair load at a moderate pace over a 
 level bit of ice. 
 
 With skilled hands the sledge is rapidly unlashed, and while 
 the main party sets up the tent the evening cook is searching 
 out a blue-topped berg, from which to get his ice for tea and 
 stew. The tent is well pitched on a proper site, which prefera 
 bly is a level snow-covered bit of floe, with a large berg near to 
 the windward to break the force of any sudden gale. If snow 
 cannot be found suited for the site of the tent, it is best that 
 snow be brought and strewed within it. This not only gives a 
 soft bed, but a comparatively warm one, for ice is almost invari 
 ably colder than snow. 
 
 The rubber tent-cloth spread, the sleeping-bags are brought 
 in and laid down, but to unroll them is a labor of love demand 
 ing the strength of a Hercules. The moisture which exhaled 
 
232 THEEE TEAES OF AECTIC SEEVICE. 
 
 the night before from the body, the falling spiculfe of snow 
 formed that morning in the tent, the lingering vapor from the 
 stew, and the drops of spilled tea have all insidiously worked 
 their way deep into the tangled hair, and, turning to ice, have 
 bound fast the tightly rolled buffalo bags. Now they are more 
 like coils of rolled sheet-iron than the supple well-tanned skins 
 they are supposed to be. By great exertions they are finally 
 forced apart, and the wise sledge traveller, be his wisdom from 
 book or experience, seeks them at the earliest moment. 
 
 The work of erecting the tent and opening the bags has 
 necessitated the use of the bare hands in a measure, and han 
 dling these articles, colder than frozen mercury, is like handling 
 hot iron which burns and cracks men's fingers and hands. The 
 comparatively light work, too, has checked the perspiration, and 
 with stiffening clothing and half -frozen fingers the travellers, 
 other than the cook and commissary sergeant, sit down ; and, 
 carefully brushing the snow from their garments, loosen the 
 lashings and take off overalls and foot-gear. They systematically 
 arrange these in the shape in which they can easiest don them, 
 for in five minutes after they are frozen solid. The feet are 
 stripped bare and a pair of fresh socks, warm from the man's 
 breast, are put on and covered at once with a pair of large dog 
 skin or sheep-skin sleeping-socks. Crawling into their bag 
 their chilled limbs gradually thaw out the frozen skin, and 
 later they acquire warmth when hot tea and stew come to 
 them. 
 
 The cook meanwhile has obtained his ice, both for morning 
 and evening meal, and has received from the sergeant the care 
 fully measured allowance of alcohol, which he takes with a dubi 
 ous shake of the head, as he sees how small the quantity and 
 how much work it is expected to do. His ice cut too coarsely 
 or mixed with too much snow, and the wicks half an inch too 
 
ESTABLISHING DEPOTS. 233 
 
 high or too low, and the result is a stew mixed with ice, or tea 
 just steaming and uncooked. 
 
 The rations, arranged at the station, are served out with the 
 same careful exactness. An ounce too much to-day means 
 shortage to-morrow. The cooking apparatus carefully placed 
 level on a board, he watches it with the utmost caution, for the 
 arrangement is such that carelessness, or perhaps the sudden 
 movement of a man in the bag, may cause a pot to tip and the 
 precious allowance, or a part at least, to be lost. An hour is a 
 moderate time in which to cook the tea, and as the frozen, 
 wretched cook watches it he realizes too keenly the truth of the 
 adage, " A watched pot never boils." 
 
 If he has inexperienced comrades they sit up and watch with 
 or aid him, some through a feeling that they must bear a hand, 
 and others because they deem it unbefitting soldiers that their 
 meals should be served them in their beds. They do not realize, 
 until taught by bitter experience, that it is best that all this 
 hardship and suffering should be avoided by all save the cook, 
 and the strength of the party thus be conserved. 
 
 The pot finally boils, and instantly it is served to the weary 
 men ; some of whom, overcome by the exhausting labors of the 
 day, have dropped off into a sleep, and are doubtful whether to 
 be vexed or pleased that they are recalled to a sense of cold and 
 weariness. The steaming tea and stew are served, the clouds of 
 vapor change to falling snow; the weary men, refreshed by their 
 meal, crawl down in their bags, to be followed by the cook as 
 soon as he can arrange his lamp and pot and tie up the tent 
 securely. 
 
 The night, or rather the hours set for sleep, passes slowly. 
 Crowded two or three into one bag, all must be awakened and 
 turn together whenever cramp or cold renders one so uncomfort 
 able that he must change his position. Stiffness, aches, rheu- 
 
234 THREE TEAKS OF ARCTIC SERVICE. 
 
 matic pains, cold, and cramps fall to every one's lot to a greater 
 or less extent. Nobody is sorry, save the cook, when the officer 
 calls that unfortunate person, whose only comfort is the reflec 
 tion that his service passes with that meal, as the cooking is 
 done in turn. 
 
 In the morning the same routine is gone through with, modi 
 fied at times by some depraved article of footgear, which, frozen 
 into metal-like hardness, will not be coaxed or forced on to the 
 foot until it has been taken literally to one's heart and thawed 
 out by the heat of the body. The slowness with which the 
 party breaks camp makes everybody wretched and ill-humored 
 until a short hour's inarch has thawed travelling gear and hu 
 man nature into tractable mood. 
 
 With the temperature 75 ( -40.7 C.) or more below the 
 freezing point of water, it seems to me surprising even now that 
 men can ever do and endure such work and exposure. Only 
 those of perfect health, iron constitution, and marked deter 
 mination are capable of continued work under such conditions. 
 This account of a march and camp is a fair description (under 
 drawn if anything) of the experiences of a sledging party fa 
 vored by fine weather and ordinary travel. When storm and 
 snow come to blind, wet, and buffet the wretched travellers, 
 their miseries cannot be described in words. Such conditions 
 as above must be imagined as the common experience of all 
 Arctic travellers until zero temperatures (17.8 C.) come with 
 May, bringing other discomforts not much less serious. 
 
 On the morning of March 16th, the temperature, which had 
 fallen during the night to -44 (-42.2 C.),had risen to -40 
 (40 C.), but a brisk northeast wind rendered travel danger 
 ous. At 9 A.M., however, the wind subsided somewhat, and 
 Sergeant Brainard decided to start. His journal says : " Last 
 night Schneider was very lame, and complained of rheumatic 
 

 





 


 
 
 \ 
 





-