ptain's
silence.

Hatteras had kept to himself the impressions which this discovery had
caused within him. It was his first moment of joy during these long
months of struggle with the hostile elements. He was one hundred and
fifty miles farther north; hardly eight degrees from the Pole! But he
hid his joy so well that the doctor did not even suspect it; he asked
himself why Hatteras's eye shone with so unusual a lustre; but that
was all, and the natural reply to this question did not enter his
head.

The _Forward_, as it approached the Pole, had drifted away from the
coal which had been seen by Sir Edward Belcher; instead of a hundred
miles, it would have to be sought two hundred and fifty miles farther
south. Still, after a short discussion between Hatteras and Clawbonny,
they determined to make the attempt.

If Belcher was right, and his accuracy could not be doubted, they
would find everything just at he had left it. Since 1853, no new
expedition had visited these remote continents. Few, if any, Esquimaux
are found in this latitude. The disaster which had befallen at Beechey
Island could not be repeated on the shores of North Cornwall.
Everything seemed to favor an excursion across the ice.

They estimated that they would be gone forty days at the outside, and
preparations were made by Johnson for that time of absence.

In the first place, he saw about the sledge; it was of the shape of
those used in Greenland, thirty-five inches broad and twenty-four feet
long. The Esquimaux sometimes make them fifty feet long. It was built
of long planks, bent at each end, and kept in position by two strong
cords. This shape adapted it to resist violent shocks. The sledge ran
easily upon the ice; but before the snow had hardened, it was
necessary to place two vertical frames near together, and being raised
in this way, it could run on without cutting too much into the snow.
Besides, by rubbing it with a mixture of sulphur and snow in the
Esquimaux fashion, it ran very easily.

[Illustration]

It was drawn by six dogs; they were strong in spite of their thinness,
and did not appear to be injured by the severity of the winter; the
harnesses of deerskin were in good condition; perfect reliance could
be placed on the equipment, which the Greenlanders at Upernavik had
sold in conscience. These six animals alone could draw a weight of two
thousand pounds without inordinate fatigue.

They carried with them a tent, in case it sh