hen
dying down till almost invisible, but only to light up the northern
heavens again, from horizon almost to zenith, with its dawn-like beauty,
till it grew hard to imagine that there was not something more to
follow.

"One would think that some kind of pale, cold sun was about to rise over
there," said Steve at last. "Are you sure that nothing will rise?"

"Nothing but more rays, sir."

"Cold rays," muttered Steve, drawing his fingers in under the sleeves of
his sheep-skin coat. "I say, Johannes, are you warm?"

"Yes, sir."

"My fingers are numbed, and it's getting hold of my toes. I'll go down
and have five minutes' warm by the cabin fire."

"No, sir, don't. Take my advice. Let's have a trot up and down the
deck till your blood circulates. Exercise is the thing out here. Blood
always running about through your veins, that's the thing to keep you
warm."

"But one is so much better after a good warm!"

"For a few minutes, sir; but get yourself warm by a good run, and it
will last for hours. Take my word; I know."

"But you've never been frozen up here?"

"Oh yes, sir, twice. Not for long, but quite long enough to know how to
act most sensibly as to eating and drinking."

"Does that make much difference?" said Steve, as they walked sharply
along the deck, and then broke into the double, step for step.

"All the difference, sir. Eat and drink well up here in these cold
places, and you are able to stand the cold."

"What do you eat, then?"

"Meat with plenty of fat, sir, and warmth-producing stuff like sugar.
The Eskimo people almost live upon fat--blubber and oil."

"Ugh!" ejaculated Steve; "how horrible! But look here, Johannes, what
do you people drink up here to help--plenty of grog?"

"No, sir, not a drop," said the Norseman sharply. "That does more harm
than good. Makes a man feverishly hot for a few minutes, then leaves
him colder than he was before."

"What do you drink, then?" said Steve, staring at the man's earnestness.

"Tea, sir; plenty of good, hot tea. It rests and refreshes a man
directly, and he can do more work on hot tea than upon anything else
that has been tried."

"Well, I don't mind tea," said Steve rather jerkily; for it was
beginning to be hard work to keep on talking while trotting round and
round the deck. But Johannes, though measuring his big strides to make
them fit with the boy's, kept up the trot till Steve was so thoroughly
out of breath that at the