The
tempest raged with such violence that neither the engine of the "Alaska"
nor her steel buttress were of much use. Not only did the vessel advance
very slowly, but at times she seemed to be fairly driven backward. The
snow was so thick that it obscured the sky, blinded the crew, and
covered the bridge a foot in depth. The ice driven against the "Alaska"
by the fierce wind increased and barred their progress, so that at
length they were glad to retreat toward the banks, in the hope of
finding some little haven where they could remain until the storm passed
over.

The American yacht had disappeared, and after the blow it had received
from the "Alaska" they almost doubted if it would be able to resist the
tornado.

Their own situation was so perilous that they could only think of their
own safety, for every moment it grew worse.

There is nothing more frightful than those arctic tempests, in which all
the primitive forces of nature seem to be awakened in order to give the
navigator a specimen of the cataclysms of the glacial period. The
darkness was profound although it was only five o'clock in the
afternoon. The engine had stopped, and they were unable to light their
electric light. To the raging of the storm was added the roars of
thunder and the tumult made by the floating blocks of ice dashing
against each other. The ice-banks were continually breaking with a noise
like the roar of a cannon.

The "Alaska" was soon surrounded by ice. The little harbor in which she
had taken refuge was soon completely filled with it, and it commenced to
press upon and dash against her sides until she began to crack, and they
feared every moment that she would go to pieces.

Erik resolved not to succumb to the storm without a combat with it, and
he set the crew to work arranging heavy beams around the vessel so as to
weaken the pressure as much as possible, and distribute it over a wider
surface. But, although this protected the vessel, it led to an
unforeseen result which threatened to be fatal.

The vessel, instead of being suddenly crushed, was lifted out of the
water by every movement of the ice, and then fell back again on it with
the force of a trip-hammer. At any moment after one of these frightful
falls they might be broken up, crushed, buried. To ward off this danger
there was only one resource, and this was to re-enforce their barrier by
heaping up the drift ice and snow around the vessel to protect her as
well as the