Eskimo, came alongside and
said, "Ship lost. Captain gone." Boats were immediately lowered and
nineteen persons, including two women and one baby, born on the
ice-pan, came aboard amidst cheers renewed again and again. They had
to be washed and fed, cleaned and clothed. The two officers were
invited to live aft and the remainder of the rescued party being
pestered to death by the sealing crew in the forecastle, it was
decided to abandon the sealing trip, and the brave explorers were
carried to St. John's, the American people eventually indemnifying the
owners of the Tigris.

In hunting my patients I started round with a book and pencil
accompanied by the steward carrying a candle and matches. The invalids
were distributed in the four holds--the after, the main, forecastle,
and foretop-gallant-forecastle. I never went round without a bottle of
cocaine solution in my pocket for the snow-blind men, who suffered the
most excruciating pain, often rolling about and moaning as if in a
kind of frenzy, and to whom the cocaine gave wonderful relief. Very
often I found that I must miss one or even both holds on my first
rounds, for the ladders were gone and seals and coals were exchanging
places in them during the first part of the day. Once down, however,
one shouts out, "Is there any one here?" No answer. Louder still, "Is
there any one here?" Perhaps a distant cough answers from some dark
recess, and the steward and I begin a search. Then we go round
systematically, climbing over on the barrels, searching under sacks,
and poking into recesses, and after all occasionally missing one or
two in our search. It seems a peculiarity about the men, that though
they will lie up, they will not always say anything about it. The
holds were very damp and dirty, but the men seemed to improve in
health and fattened like the young seals. It must have been the pork,
doughs, and excellent fresh meat of the seal. We had boiled or fried
seal quite often with onions, and I must say that it was excellent
eating--far more palatable than the dried codfish, which, when one has
any ice work, creates an intolerable thirst.

The rats were making a huge noise one night and a barrel man gave it
as his opinion that we should have a gale before long; but a glorious
sunshine came streaming down upon us next morning, and we decided
perforce the rats were evidently a little previous.

On Sunday I had a good chance to watch the seals. They came up, simply
sta