Page:The frozen North; an account of Arctic exploration for use in schools (IA frozennorthaccou00hort).pdf/127

 and difficult to traverse. After working all night, the men crawled into their sleeping bags, and were soon asleep.

For several days little progress was made toward land. Then a heavy swell arose and the breakers dashing over the floe where the tent had been pitched threatened to wash it away.

Suddenly the floe split through the middle, and the travelers were obliged to remove to a larger one and camp again. The tent stood now on a piece of drifting ice, about ten miles from land, with every prospect of being carried out to sea, where small boats could not live in the heavy waves. The outlook was certainly gloomy.

One morning Nansen missed Balto and Ravna. In searching for them he lifted the canvas covering of one of the boats, and saw the two Lapps lying in the bottom of