,
Hatteras?"

"Let us make our preparations at once," said the captain, "and be off.
Perhaps we shall find the way longer than we suppose."

"Why so?" asked the doctor. "This man seemed certain of the situation
of his ship."

"But," answered Hatteras, "supposing the _Porpoise_ has been drifting
as the _Forward_ did?"

"True," said the doctor, "that's not unlikely."

Johnson and Bell had nothing to urge against the possibility of a
drift of which they had themselves been victims.

But Altamont, who was listening to the conversation, gave the doctor
to understand that he wished to speak. After an effort of about a
quarter of an hour, Clawbonny made out that the _Porpoise_ was lying
on a bed of rocks, and so could not have drifted away. This
information calmed the anxiety of the Englishmen; still it deprived
them of their hope of returning to Europe, unless Bell should be able
to build a small boat out of the timbers of the _Porpoise_. However
that might be, it was now of the utmost importance that they should
reach the wreck.

The doctor put one more question to the American, namely, whether he
had found an open sea at latitude 83 degrees.

"No," answered Altamont.

There the conversation stopped. They began at once to prepare for
departure; Bell and Johnson first began to see about the sledge, which
needed complete repairing. Since they had plenty of wood, they made
the uprights stronger, availing themselves of the experience of their
southern trip. They had learned the dangers of this mode of transport,
and since they expected to find plenty of deep snow, the runners were
made higher.

On the inside Bell made a sort of bed, covered with the canvas of the
tent, for the American; the provisions, which were unfortunately
scanty, would not materially augment the weight of the sledge, but
still they made up for that by loading it with all the wood it could
carry.

The doctor, as he packed all the provisions, made out a very careful
list of their amount; he calculated that each man could have three
quarters of a ration for a journey of three weeks. A whole ration was
set aside for the four dogs which should draw it. If Duke aided them,
he was to have a whole ration.

[Illustration]

These preparations were interrupted by the need of sleep and rest,
which they felt at seven o'clock in the evening; but before going to
bed they gathered around the stove, which was well filled with fuel,
and these poor men lux