Chapter 29 Chapter 29 Crossing the Ice Field

The little procession set out southeast, with Simpson driving the sled.Darke helped him enthusiastically, not surprised by his kind of industry.Hatteras and the doctor walked behind, Bell took care of the road, and walked ahead, probing the ice with the tip of the iron rod. Rising temperatures herald a snowfall, and it didn't take long for the snow to fall in large swaths.These bleak snow masses made walking difficult; they deviated from the correct course; they could not go fast; but, they averaged three nautical miles an hour. The ice field became heaving and uneven from the pressure of the ice, the sledges were often bumpy, and because of the slope of the road it sometimes slanted at a worrying angle; but they got out of trouble at last.

Hatteras and his companions swathed themselves in leather garments cut in the green fashion; A snow-tight bonnet is tightly hooped, so that only the mouth, nose, and eyes are in contact with the air, and there is no need to protect them; They can only be brought down at night with an axe, a nasty form of undressing even in polar seas.Instead, you should keep your breathing unobstructed, and if your breathing encounters an obstacle, you should immediately concentrate on it. The endless plains are monotonous and tiring to walk on; there are piled up icebergs everywhere, and the irregular ice mounds seem a bit special, a snowdrift poured from a mold, with a winding valley in the middle of the iceberg , they walked with a compass; the travelers seldom spoke.Opening your mouth was a real pain in the frigid air; spikes of ice suddenly grew between your lips, and the heat of your exhalation could not melt them.Everyone walked in silence, each groping the unfamiliar ground with a stick.Bell's footprints were printed on the soft snow, and the others followed him wholeheartedly. Wherever he passed, the rest of the team hurriedly followed.

Many tracks of bears and foxes gathered from all sides; but it was impossible to see one such beast on the first day; hunting them was dangerous and useless; . Usually on such excursions, travelers place their daily necessities carefully on the way; they lighten the journey as much as possible by placing them in snow caves out of the reach of animals, and on their return they gradually collect the food, so that They don't have to bother with it. Hatteras couldn't use this method on the rink, where it might move; on solid ground, such a deposit would still work, but not on the rink, where the uncertain route makes it difficult to get back where you've already traveled. Very problematic.

At noon Hatteras halted the little procession against a wall of ice, and the meal consisted of dry meat pies and hot tea, the refreshing effect of which produced a real comfort which no traveler could do without. After an hour's rest the journey continued; the first day was about twenty miles; the night was exhausting, man and dog. But, despite the exhaustion, a igloo had to be built for the night, and tents were not enough.It took an hour and a half to finish.Bell was very experienced, and the ice cut with a knife was quickly piled up to form a dome, and the last quarter was used to secure the building and formed the key of the dome; the soft snow was used as mortar.It fills the gaps and quickly becomes solid, blending in with the whole building.

Through a narrow opening one could crawl into this makeshift cave; the doctor climbed in with difficulty, and the others followed.They quickly made a midnight snack on the alcohol stove.The temperature inside the igloo was still tolerable, and the raging wind outside couldn't get inside. time to eat!cried the doctor in the friendliest tone. The meal is always the same, with few changes, but it can be refreshing, and everyone eats together.After eating, everyone just thought about sleeping; the tarpaulins were spread on the snow to keep out moisture, and they dried their socks and shoes with the fire of a simple stove; An individual is responsible for the vigilance, and this individual must keep everyone safe from blocking the opening of the igloo, because, otherwise, they risk being buried alive.

Duck was also in the igloo, and the driving dog was outside, huddled under the snow after their supper, which soon became their airtight quilt. The fatigue of the day makes them fall asleep quickly.The doctor was on duty at three in the morning; the hurricane was raging outside.What a strange situation it is, these lonely beings lost in the snow, buried in this grave whose walls are thickening in the wind! At six o'clock the next morning, the tedious journey began again; always the same valleys, the same icebergs, a uniformity that made it hard to choose a direction.But the temperature dropped a few degrees, and the travelers, gliding across the snow, ran faster.Often they came upon some knoll that looked like a stone home or an Eskimo house; the doctor, in good conscience, toppled one and found only a heap of ice.

What do you expect, Croubney?Hatteras said to him, Aren't we the first to set foot on this part of the earth? Possibly, replied the doctor, but anyway, who knows? Don't waste your time on vain searches,' added the captain, 'I am anxious to get back to the ship, especially since we are short of this much-needed fuel. In this regard, said the doctor, I have great hopes. Doctor, Hatteras used to say, I made a mistake leaving the Forward; it was a mistake!The captain's place is on the ship and nowhere else. Johnson is there. indeed!Anyway, let's hurry!Let's hurry!

The procession walked quickly; they heard Simpson yelling at the dogs, which, by a strange phosphorescence, seemed to be running over burning ground, and the frames of the sled raised dust like sparks.The doctor walked ahead in order to test the nature of this snow, and suddenly, while jumping over a small ice mound, he disappeared.Bell was beside him, and immediately ran over. Alas, Mr. Crawburn, he cried anxiously, as Hatteras and Simpson overtook him, where are you? doctor!cried the captain. I'm here!In one of the holes, a calm voice answered, Give me a length of rope, and I'll climb to the surface of the earth.

They handed the doctor the rope, and he crouched at the bottom of a funnel some dozen feet; he hung it around his waist, and his three companions pulled him up with difficulty. Are you injured?asked Hatteras. No!I'm not in danger, the doctor replied with a face full of snow. How could this happen to you? oh!That's the problem with refraction!He answered with a smile, always refracted!I thought I had stepped over a foot-wide ditch, and instead I fell into a ten-foot hole!ah!The illusion of light!This is the only delusion I have left, my friends, but it is not easy for me to lose it!This tells you that you must not take a step before you have figured out the ground conditions, because you cannot calculate based on your feelings!Here, the ears will hear wrong, and what the eyes see is false!This is indeed an area prone to deviation.

Can we keep going?asked the captain. Go on, Hatteras, go on!The benefits outweigh the disadvantages of this small fall.Then they continued southeastward, and when night came, the travelers stopped, and they traveled twenty-five miles; they were exhausted, but this did not prevent the doctor from climbing an iceberg while he was building his snow house. The moon, still almost full, shone brilliantly in the clear sky, and the stars cast unusually strong rays; Glittering below, their clear outlines are outlined on the surrounding shadows, like upright pillars, overturned tree trunks, tombstones, like a wide cemetery without trees, sad, silent, boundless, like human beings Twenty generations have lain here comfortably in eternal rest.

The doctor watched for a long time in spite of the cold and fatigue, and his companions had difficulty pulling him down; but it was time to rest, the igloo was repaired, and the four travelers huddled together like moles. group, and soon fell asleep. The next day and the days that followed were uneventful, and the speed of the trip depended on the change of temperature, sometimes harsh and icy, sometimes wet and biting; the conditions of the ground should decide whether to wear moccasins or snow floor shoes. Thus came the fifteenth of January; the moon became a crescent, and soon disappeared; although the sun was hidden below the horizon, and for six hours gave a kind of twilight glow, it was not enough to illuminate the way; Pathfinding in the specified direction.Bell went ahead; Hatteras followed directly behind him.Then Simpson and the doctor, one behind the other, saw only Hatteras, also trying to keep in line.But, despite their caution, they would sometimes deviate by thirty or forty degrees and have to start over again. On February 15, Hatteras traveled an estimated 100 nautical miles to the south; this morning was spent repairing various daily and bivouac appliances; and he did not forget to read the Bible. At noon they began to advance again; it was very cold; the thermometer read minus thirty-six degrees Celsius, and the sky was unusually clear. Suddenly, without knowing why, there was a sudden change, and a completely frozen fog rose from the ground; it was about ninety feet high, and it was completely motionless; they could see each other clearly only within a step; this fog condensed on the clothes, Long, pointed ice edges erected. When travelers encountered this kind of ice fog, their first thought was to get together, and immediately there were various shouts: Oh, Simpson! Bell!it's here! Mr Crawford! doctor! captain!where are you The four traveling companions looked for each other, their arms waving in the thick fog, but their eyes couldn't see anything.But what worried them was that they could hear no answer; it seemed that the fog was unfit for sound. Everyone wanted to shoot, to signal their coming together, but if the voices of the speech were too weak, the sound of the guns was too loud, because the echoes drowned each other out and reflected from all directions, creating a kind of reverberation that was not sure direction. Everyone acts according to their instincts.Hatteras paused, arms folded, and waited.Simpson could only struggle to hold on to his sled.Bell took a few steps back, carefully groping for footprints with his hands.The doctor hit the ice, fell and got up again, walked left and right, his steps became more and more confused, and after five minutes, he said to himself: This won't last long!What a strange climate!What a surprise!I really don't know what to rely on, let alone these ice edges that hurt my face.oh!oh!captain!He cried again. But he heard no reply; and by sheer chance he loaded the gun again, though he wore thick gloves, and the cold barrel burned his hand.While doing this, he seemed to vaguely see a vague figure dangling a few steps away from him. It's not easy!Hatteras, he said!Bell!Simpson!Is that you?answer me! There was a muffled sound. cough!The kind doctor thought, what the hell is going on here? The shadow drew nearer; its original size diminished, its outline accentuated, and a terrible thought flashed through the doctor's mind. a bear!he thought. Indeed, it was probably a bear of considerable size; lost in the mist, coming and going, backing away, it narrowly missed these travelers whose presence he certainly would not have suspected. Things are complicated!thought the doctor, he was motionless. Sometimes he would feel the breath of the beast before it disappeared into the icy mist; Being so close to him, his clothes were torn more than once by the sharp claws, and he jumped behind, and the moving colossus disappeared like a ghost. But the doctor stepped back, feeling the ground rise under his feet; with his hands on the edge of the ice, he climbed over one obstacle, then two more, groping with his stick. An iceberg!Talking to himself, he looked around and saw his three companions emerge from the fog. Hatteras! Mr Crawford! Bell! Simpson! The four cried out almost at the same time; the sky, illuminated by a beautiful halo, glowed faintly, and painted the dense fog like clouds in colorful colors, and the tops of icebergs seemed to emerge from a silver sea.The travelers found themselves surrounded by circles at least a hundred feet in diameter.Fortunately, the sky above was clearer and the weather was cold, so they could easily hear each other talking, and they could observe from the height of the iceberg.After each of them had fired the first shot, there was no answer to be heard, and little better to do than to rise in the mist. sled!cried the captain. Eighty feet below our feet.Simpson replied. As good as ever? As good as ever. Where's the bear?asked the doctor. what bearBell replied. The bear I ran into, it nearly broke my head off. a bear!Let's go down, said Hatteras. No!We'll still be lost, the doctor retorts, for sure. If the beast fell upon our dogs, said Hatteras. At this moment, Duck's cry was heard, which came from the fog and could easily reach the traveler's ears. It's Dak!cried Hatteras, something must have happened.I go down. The barking of the dogs came from below in unison, like a terrible ensemble; Duck and the dogs barked.The sounds are like a hum overall, but there is no loud sound, as in a room full of things.They felt an invisible struggle beneath, in the fog.Like a sea of ​​monsters fighting. Dark!Dark!shouted the captain, wanting to get back into the ice fog. etc!Hatteras, wait!The doctor replied, I think the fog has dissipated. The mist did not dissipate, but it slowly dried up like water in a pond, and it seemed to return to the ground where it was born, with the glistening tops of ice growing above it; the other tops were momentarily submerged In the mist, revealed like new islands; and by a common optical illusion, the travelers clung to the icicles, thinking they had risen into the air, and the highest mist receded beneath them. Soon the top of the sled appeared, then the driving dog, then about thirty other beasts, and finally the wobbly giant, and Duck jumped up, his head lifted from the snow , Burying his head in again and again. fox!bell yelled. Bear!The doctor replied, one head, three heads, five heads! our dog!our food!shouted Simpson. A group of foxes and bears came to the sled and spoiled a lot of things.Predatory nature brought them into complete accord, and the dogs barked, but the beasts paid no heed, and the scene of destruction proceeded with fury. shot!shouted the captain, and he loaded the cartridge. His companions followed his example.But at the sound of the four shots, the bears raised their heads, and with a comical howl, signaled their retreat, and trotted away, outnumbered by horses, followed by the pack of foxes, They quickly disappear among the icebergs in the Arctic.