CHAPTER X.THE PLEASURES OF WINTER-QUARTERS.
There is a gloomy monotony about life at the Pole. Man is wholly thesport of the changes of the weather, which alternates between intensecold and severe storms with savage relentlessness. The greater part ofthe time it is impossible to set foot out of doors; one is imprisonedin the hut of ice. Long months pass in this way, so that men lead thelife of moles.
The next day the thermometer was several degrees lower, and the airwas full of clouds of snow, which absorbed all the light of day. Thedoctor saw himself kept within doors, and he folded his arms; therewas nothing to be done, except every hour to clear away theentrance-hall and to repolish the ice-walls which the heat within madedamp; but the snow-house was very finely built, and the snow added toits resistance by augmenting the thickness of its walls.
The stores were equally secure. All the objects taken from the shiphad been arranged in order in these "Docks of Merchandise," as thedoctor called them. Now, although these stores were at a distance ofonly sixty feet from the house, it was yet on some days almostimpossible to get to them; hence a certain quantity of provisions hadalways to be kept in the kitchen for daily needs.
They had been wise in unloading the _Porpoise_. The ship was exposedto a gentle, but persistent pressure, which was gradually crushing it;it was evident that nothing could be done with its fragments; stillthe doctor kept hoping to be able to build a launch out of them toreturn to England in, but the time for building it had not yet come.
So for the most part the five men remained in complete idleness.Hatteras was pensive and always lying on the bed; Altamont wasdrinking or sleeping, and the doctor took good care not to rouse himfrom his slumbers, for he was always afraid of some distressingquarrel. These two men seldom spoke to one another.
So during meal-time the prudent Clawbonny always took care to guidethe conversation and to direct it in such a way as not to offend thesusceptibilities of either; but he had a great deal to do. He did hisbest to instruct, distract, and interest his companions; when he wasnot arranging his notes about the expedition, he read aloud somehistory, geography, or work on meteorology, which had reference totheir condition; he presented things pleasantly and philosophically,deriving wholesome instruction from the slightest incidents; hisinexhaustible memory never played him false; he applied his doctrinesto the persons who were with him, reminding them of such or such athing which happened under such or such circumstances; and he filledout his theories by the force of personal arguments.
"He did his best to instruct and interest hiscompanions."]
This worthy man may be called the soul of this little world, a soulglowing with frankness and justice. His companions had perfectconfidence in him; he even improved Captain Hatteras, who, besides,was very fond of him; he made his words, manners, and custom soagreeable, that the life of these five men within six degrees of thePole seemed perfectly natural; when he was speaking, any one wouldhave imagined he was in his office in Liverpool. And yet thissituation was unlike that of castaways on the islands of the PacificOcean, those Robinsons whose touching history always aroused the envyof their readers. There, the natural richness offers a thousanddifferent resources; a little imagination and effort suffice to securematerial happiness; nature aids man; hunting and fishing supply allhis wants; the trees grow to aid him, caverns shelter him, brooksslake his thirst, dense thickets hide him from the sun, and severecold never comes upon him in the winter; a grain tossed into the earthbrings forth a bounteous return a few months later. There, outside ofsociety, everything is found to make man happy. And then these happyisles lie in the path of ships; the castaway can hope to be picked up,and he can wait in patience.
But here on the coast of New America how great is the difference! Thiscomparison would continually occur to the doctor, but he nevermentioned it to the others, and he struggled against the enforcedidleness.
He yearned ardently for the spring, in order to resume his excursions;and yet he was anxious about it, for he foresaw difficulties betweenHatteras and Altamont. If they pushed on to the Pole, there wouldnecessarily be rivalry between the two men. Hence he had to preparefor the worst, and still, as far as he could, to try to pacify theserivals; but to reconcile an American and an Englishman, two menhostile to one another from their birth, one endowed with real insularprejudice, the other with the adventurous, irreverent spirit of hiscountry, was no easy task. When the doctor thought of their eagerrivalry, which in fact was one of nationalities, he could not help,not shrugging his shoulders, but lamenting human weakness. He wouldoften talk to Johnson on this subject; he and the old sailor agreed inthe matter; they were uncertain what view to take, and they foresawcomplications in the future.
Still, the bad weather continued; they could not leave Fort Providenceeven for an hour. Night and day they had to remain in the snow-house.They all found it tedious, except the doctor, who found diversion forhimself.
"Isn't there any way we can amuse ourselves?" said Altamont oneevening. "This isn't really living, lying here like sluggish reptilesall winter."
"It's a pity," said the doctor, "that we are too few to organize anysystem of distractions."
"Do you mean it would be easier for us to combat idleness if therewere more of us?" asked the American.
"Yes; when whole crews have wintered in boreal regions, they havefound out the way to avoid idleness."
"To tell the truth," said Altamont, "I should like to know how theydid; they must have been very ingenious to get any fun out of thesesurroundings. They didn't ask one another riddles, I suppose?"
"No," answered the doctor, "but they introduced into these lands twogreat means of amusement, the press and the theatre."
"What! did they have a newspaper?" asked the American.
"Did they act plays?" asked Bell.
"Yes, and with much amusement. While he was wintering at MelvilleIsland, Captain Parry offered his crews these two entertainments, andthey enjoyed them very much."
"Well," said Johnson, "I should have liked to be there; it must havebeen funny enough."
"Funny indeed; Lieutenant Beecher was manager of the theatre, andCaptain Sabine editor of the 'Winter Chronicle, or Gazette of NorthGeorgia.'"
"Good names," said Altamont.
"The paper appeared every Monday morning, from November 1, 1819, toMarch 20, 1820. It contained an account of everything that happened,the hunts, accidents, incidents, and of the weather; there werestories written for it; to be sure, it lacked the humor of Sterne, andthe delightful articles of the 'Daily Telegraph'; but they gotamusement from it; its readers were not over-critical, and I fancy nojournalists ever enjoyed their occupation more."
"Well," said Altamont, "I should like to hear some extracts from thispaper, my dear Doctor; its articles must all have been frozen solid."
"No, no," answered the doctor; "at any rate, what would have seemedsimple enough to the Liverpool Philosophical Society, or the LondonLiterary Institution, was perfectly satisfactory to the crews beneaththe snow. Do you want a sample?"
"What! Do you remember--"
"No, but you had 'Parry's Voyages' on board the _Porpoise_, and I canread you his own account."
"Do!" shouted the doctor's companions.
"There's nothing easier."
The doctor got the book from the shelves, and soon found the passage.
"See here," he said, "here are some extracts from the newspaper. It isa letter addressed to the editor:--
"'It is with genuine satisfaction that your plan for the establishmentof a newspaper has been received. I am convinced that under yourcharge it will furnish us with a great deal of amusement, and willserve to lighten materially the gloom of our hundred days of darkness.
"'The interest which I, for my part, take in it has caused me toexamine the effect of your announcement upon the members of oursociety, and I can assure you, to use the consecrated phrase of theLondon press, that it has produced a profound impression upon thepublic.
"'The day after t
he appearance of your prospectus, there was on boardan unusual and unprecedented demand for ink. The green cloth of ourtables was suddenly covered with a deluge of quill-pens, to the greatinjury of one of our servants, who, in trying to remove them, got oneunder his nail.
"'Finally, I know that Sergeant Martin has had no less than ninepocket-knives to sharpen.
"'Our tables are groaning beneath the unaccustomed weight ofinkstands, which had not seen the light for two months; and it is evenwhispered that the depths of the hold have been often opened to securemany reams of paper, which did not expect to issue so soon from theirplace of repose.
"'I shall not forget to say to you that I have some suspicions that aneffort will be made to slip into your box some articles, which,lacking complete originality, and not being wholly unpublished, maynot suit your plan. I can affirm that no later than last evening anauthor was seen bending over his desk, holding in one hand an openvolume of the "Spectator," while with the other he was thawing his inkby the flame of the lamp. It is useless to recommend you to keep alookout against such devices; we must not see reappearing in the"Winter Chronicle" what our ancestors used to read at breakfast morethan a century ago.'"
"Well, well," said Altamont, when the doctor had finished reading,"there is really good humor in that, and the writer must have been abright fellow."
"Bright is the word," answered the doctor. "Stop a moment, here is anamusing advertisement:--
"'Wanted. A middle-aged, respectable woman to help dress the ladies ofthe troupe of the "Theatre Royal of North Georgia." Suitable salarygiven, tea and beer free. Address the Committee of the theatre.--N. B.A widow preferred.'"
"They were not disgusted, at any rate," said Johnson.
"And did they get the widow?" asked Bell.
"Probably," answered the doctor, "for here is an answer addressed tothe committee:--
"'Gentlemen: I am a widow, twenty-six years old, and I can producewarm testimonials as to my morals and talents. But before takingcharge of the dresses of the actresses of your theatre, I am anxiousto know if they intend to keep their trousers on, and whether I canhave the aid of some strong sailors to lace their corsets properly.This being arranged, gentlemen, you may count upon your servant.
"'A. B.
"'P. S. Can you not substitute brandy for beer?'"
"Bravo!" shouted Altamont. "I suppose they had ladies'-maids to laceyou by the capstan. Well, they were jolly fellows!"
"Like all who do what they set out to do," remarked Hatteras.
Hatteras uttered these words, and then he relapsed into his usualsilence. The doctor, unwilling to dwell on that subject, hastened toresume his reading.
"See here," he said, "here is a picture of arctic sufferings; it maybe varied infinitely; but a few of the observations are wise enough;for instance:--
"'To go out in the morning to take the air, and on setting foot offthe ship, to take a cold bath in the cook's trough.
"'To go on a hunting-party, get near a fine reindeer, take aim, try tofire, and miss the shot on account of a damp cap.
"'To start out with a piece of fresh bread in the pocket, and when onegets hungry to find it frozen hard enough to break one's teeth.
"'To leave the table suddenly on hearing a wolf is in sight of theship, and to come back and find one's dinner eaten by the cat.
"'To return from a walk rapt in thought, and to be awakened suddenlyby the embrace of a bear.'
"You see, my friends," said the doctor, "we should not find it hard toimagine other polar troubles; but from the moment it becomes necessaryto endure these miseries, it would be a pleasure to narrate them."
"Upon my word," said Altamont, "that's an amusing paper, and it's apity we can't subscribe to it."
"Suppose we should start one," suggested Johnson.
"We five!" answered Clawbonny; "we should all be editors, and therewould be no readers."
"Nor audience either, if we should act a play," said Altamont.
"Tell us, Doctor," said Johnson, "something about Captain Parry'stheatre; did they act new plays there?"
"Of course; at first they made use of two volumes which were put onboard of the _Hector_, and they had plays every fortnight; but soonthey had acted all; then they resorted to original authors, and Parryhimself wrote a suitable play for the Christmas holidays; it was verysuccessful, and was called 'The Northwest Passage, or the End of theVoyage.'"
"A capital title," answered Altamont; "but I confess, if I had towrite on that subject, I should be puzzled about the end."
"You are right," said Bell; "who can say how it will end?"
"True," answered the doctor; "but why bother about the end, since thebeginning is so favorable? Let us trust in Providence, my friends; letus act our part well, and since the end depends on the Author of allthings, let us have confidence in him; he will know what to do withus."
"Let us sleep on it," answered Johnson; "it is late, and since bedtimehas come, let us turn in."
"You are in a great hurry, my old friend," said the doctor.
"Naturally enough, Doctor, I am so comfortable in bed! And then mydreams are pleasant. I dream of warm countries; or that, to tell thetruth, half of my life is spent at the equator and half at the Pole!"
"The deuce," said Altamont, "you have a happy temperament."
"True," answered the boatswain.
"Well, it would be cruel to detain Johnson any longer. His tropicalsun is waiting for him. Let us go to bed."