He has a good voice, but untrained.

Yesterday it was fifteen degrees below zero, but grew warmer toward
night, and began snowing. Today it snowed quite hard until dark. Along
the shore huge blocks of ice lay heaped promiscuously, and deep drifts
rolled smoothly everywhere. When I grew tired walking I stopped a moment
and listened. There was no sound but the beating of my own heart. This
then was our new Arctic world. How wonderfully beautiful it was in its
purity and stillness. Look whichever way I would, all was perfect
whiteness and silence. When I walked the snow scarcely creaked under my
feet. Above, beneath, around, it was everywhere the same. It was a
solemn stillness, but ineffably sweet and tender. It was good to live. A
feeling of sweetest peace and happiness swept over me, and tears sprang
to my eyes. Was this heaven? It almost seemed like it, but glancing
toward the grave of the murdered man on the hillside I remembered that
this could not be. Farther down the shore line, when I started to go
home, I saw the smoke of the cabins, through the veil of the snowflakes.

[Illustration: WINTER PROSPECTING.]

While giving Jennie her lessons this afternoon the Commissioner came in
to say that he would like me to do some copying for him, for as yet he
has no clerk, and needs one. I told him I would do the work if I might
take it home, and could get a quiet corner by myself. I hardly see how I
am to manage that while there are so many people in the house, but I
shall try it, for I would like to earn the money.

This morning it was three degrees above zero; yesterday it was fifteen
below.

A full moon hung high in the sky this morning until nine o'clock.
Weather is warm and beautiful, with rosy clouds at sunrise, but it grew
colder by noon.

Among other things Mary has brought from Nome is her little hand sewing
machine, which is an old-fashioned thing, to be fastened to a table and
the wheel turned by hand. It was brought from the old country, and looks
quite well worn, but is still useful and far better than no machine, if
it does have a chain stitch which is liable to rip easily. We have a lot
of amusement with this machine, for when Alma is sewing and one of the
boys happens to be idle about her she makes him turn the wheel while
she guides the cloth and watches the needle.

Others besides myself are wearing muckluks by this time, though not all
have come to them, the felt shoes being worn in the house some