s quite true."

"Thank you," said Steve, smiling. "Put if ta sun coes on like tat, an'
she's squirming oop an' squirming doon, she's cot something wrong wi'
her wairks."

Steve laughed.

"Ay, put it's naething to lauch aboot, Meester Stevey. Thenk o' the sun
coing quite oot for eighteen weeks. Oh, it's a waefu' place. What'll
we do when it's a' nicht?"

"Go to sleep like the bears do, and have a good long rest."

"Go to sleep for eighteen weeks!" cried Watty in horror. "Why, she'd
nivver wak' ony mair!"

"Oh yes, you would; and besides, it will not be quite dark. There'll be
the moon and stars and the aurora."

"She dinna ken onything apoot the roarer. Will she mak' it licht?"

"Yes, beautifully."

"Hey, but caud as it is the noo?"

"Much colder," cried Steve.

"Then she'll chust lie doon and dee," said Watty piteously, "for she
canna bear to thenk upo' it. Cauder than it is the noo, an' her han's
and foots like they are. Why, she'd be a' one creat chilplain ivery
wha'! What wad her mither say if she knew?"

The lads were out on the trampled snow about a hundred yards from the
_Hvalross_, which looked, with its snow-covered roofing, like some long,
low house, out of which three tall masts had grown. And as they were
talking a hail came from the canvas-covered doorway at the top of the
gangway.

The resemblance to a low, long house was increased by the iron chimneys
rising out through the snow and the big funnel of the boiler, from all
of which black smoke was issuing; for, the ample supply of coal being so
near, Captain Marsham had the engine furnace kept going for the sake of
the heat given by the boilers, as well as from the fire itself. In
fact, the engine-room and stoke-hole became favourite places with the
men of an evening before bed, or after a long tramp round somewhere
through the snow; for, now that they were fairly started in their battle
with the arctic winter, the weather had to be very bad, and the wind
very keen, for the crew to be kept out of their daily exercise.

The loud hail came from the doorway, and a curious-looking figure like a
diver in a fur suit came down the well-made flight of ice steps, and
advanced to join the two lads. The resemblance to a diver increased as
it drew nearer, for the face was almost completely hidden by the
visor-like arrangement of the round, helmet-shaped cap, and in place of
a visor's bars there were two large, round green-glass goggles whi