Come along, then," said the Norseman; "there's room now."

There was an unusual sensation of numbness in Steve's arms as he climbed
back on to the wooden spells, and he knew that he had been motionless
quite long enough; and he could not help feeling that if he had remained
there another hour clinging to the icy shrouds he would not have been
able to live. But the circulation began to return as soon as he exerted
himself, and, after a little effort, he squeezed himself up through the
bottom of the cask, the trap fell into its place, and he dragged the
case of the glass round to the front so as to get at the double
telescope.

The scene from the deck had been wonderful, but from the interior of the
crow's-nest the wonder was vastly increased, and Steve could have stood
there for hours, sweeping with the glass in all directions, gazing with
delight at the floating ice-islands of every form and size, from the
little block that could be thrust aside with a boat-hook to the field or
detached floe a mile across; and all in motion, drifting with the
current toward the north-east, and rising and falling on the heavy swell
left by the storm. There was an incessant cracking roar, too, from all
around, as the blocks came in contact and ground together; while from
time to time, consequent upon undulation of the surface, a field split
right across with a tremendous report.

But there was no time to study the beauty of the surroundings, and Steve
had to leave all contemplation of the silver islands floating upon a
black sea, to try and trace the open water from where they were right up
to the land.

Twice over he was at fault, as he supposed, for he followed with the
glass a broad, canal-like line of clear water quite a couple of miles,
and then it appeared to be blocked up with ice. He said so to Johannes;
but the Norseman shook his head.

"The water goes round behind those blocks, sir," he said.

"But can you tell that with the naked eye, Johannes?"

"Yes, sir, clearly."

The result was that a clear way was well traced out for the _Hvalross_
right up to the rugged land with its mountains, not more than eight
miles away, so that navigation would be perfectly easy at that moment.
What it would be with the vast army of ice blocks advancing to invade
the shores of the unknown land, it would be impossible to say.

All these facts were communicated bit by bit to the deck, with the
consequence that the speed was increased, an