y.

"What is necessary must be done," replied the mate, "and
to-day we must set to work."

That was a sad day on which we began our preparations.

Endicott, the cook, was the only man who submitted without
murmuring. As a negro, who cares little about the future, shallow
and frivolous like all his race, he resigned himself easily to his
fate; and this is, perhaps, true philosophy. Besides, when it came
to the question of cooking, it mattered very little to him whether
it was here or there, so long as his stoves were set up somewhere.

So he said to his friend the mate, with his broad negro smile,--

"Luckily my kitchen did not go off with the schooner, and you
shall see, Hurliguerly, if I do not make up dishes just as good as
on board the _Halbrane_, so long as provisions don't grow scarce, of
course--"

"Well! they will not be wanting for some time to come," replied
the boatswain. "We need not fear hunger, but cold, such cold as
would reduce you to an icicle the minute ycu cease to warm your
feetwcold that makes your skin crack and your skull split! Even if
we had some hundreds of tons of coal--But, all things being well
calculated, there is only just what will do to boil this large
kettle."

"And that is sacred," cried Endicott; "touching is forbidden!
The kitchen before all."

"And that is the reason why it never strikes you to pity yourself,
you old nigger! You can always make sure of keeping your feet warm
at your oven!"

"What would you have, boatswain? You are a first-rate cook, or you
are not. When you are, you take advantage of it; but I will remember
to keep you a little place before my stove."

"That's good! that's good, Endicott! Each one shall have his
turn! There is no privilege, even for a boatswain! On the whole, it
is better not to have to fear famine! One can fight against the
cold. We shall dig holes in the iceberg, and cuddle ourselves up
there. And why should we not have a general dwelling-room? We could
make a cave for ourselves with pickaxes! I have heard tell that ice
preserves heat. Well, let it preserve ours, and that is all I ask of
it?"

The hour had come for us to return to the camp and to seek our
sleeping-places.

Dirk Peters alone refused to be relieved of his duty as watchman of
the boat, and nobody thought of disputing the post with him.

Captain Len Guy and West did not enter the tents until they had made
certain that Hearne and his companions had gone to their usual