" F E A N K , I'm dying." It was Jim Richards who spoke. Poor fellow, his vitality had

sunk so low that the cold had become too much for him. " Cheer up, Jim," I said, as cheerfully as I could; " don't leave

me alone. Take a little brandy, and you'll pull through." I took the flask from my pocket, where I kept it to prevent it

freezing; it contained all the brandy we had left, diluted with water. Little by little he drank it up, and then he seemed better.

"Frank," he said, with an effort, "you've been very good to me, no woman could be more gentle. The sleigh may come in the morning and take you." " And take us both," I replied, almost overcome with grief. "No, Frank, not me; I'll soon be gone. If I could have the

Sacrament I'd die happy. If you ever see mother, cheer her up ; there are lots left to take care of her, thank God." The effort he had made to say so much seemed to have exhausted

him. He spoke again once or twice, but it was disjointedly, and then he died.

I had him in m y arms, so that we might keep as warm as possible. By-and-by he began to get cold, and I knew his troubles had ended. 1 got up, closed his eyes, put him on a rug, and then went back to the warmth of the skins again. Poor Jim ami I were the last of the crew of the steamship Prospector, that had started on an Arctic expedition from Quebec nearly a year before, and now we were alone in a snow hut, about 104 latitude and 76 longitude. Jim Richards and I, Frank Farleigh, had been at the Edinburgh

University together, where, year after year, we had worked side by side, passed the same examinations, and finally got the degrees of Doctor of Medicine and Doctor of Surgery. W e then left the

B

2 BEYOND THE ICE.

University, and shortly afterwards joined the Prospector, Jim as doctor, and 1 as naturalist. W e had no money; and, apart from the interest we felt in the

voyage, hoped it would give us sufficient notoriety to enable us successfully to commence the practice of our profession in some large town, besides supplying us with sufficient capital to enable us to meet the initial expenses of establishing ourselves.

W e were both big, strong men, as, indeed, were all the crew of the ill-fated vessel, from captain to cabin-boy, the latter of w h o m was only a boy in name, for on these expeditions only men are taken.

As all the particulars of this expedition, and its purpose, are fully and ably given elsewhere, I shall not occupy these pages with repeating them, nor shall I describe the many hardships we went through upi to the time of Jim's death.

The hardships and adventures of all expeditions such as this are so similar, and so harrowing in their horrible details, that any of m y readers can easily learn the main features of all of them by consulting any authentic work on the subject. Besides, I shall have all m y time and attention taken up to describe the wonderful state of civilization, and general happiness, I dis­covered in that long-suspected region of fertility at the North Pole.

Next morning, when I awoke, I lit a fire, on which I put pieces of moss, so that I might obtain warmth, and make sufficient smoke to attract the attention of the person or persons who had the sleigh, the trail of which Jim and I had seen the evening before. The discovery had been just in time to prevent us from dying of sheer exhaustion and despair; a d though I had some dim hopes of the sleigh returning : after a short elation, poor Jim sank back to his former state of despondency, and died.

Jim was neither wanting in vitality nor courage, as was proved by the fact that of the party of twenty-three men, of w h o m we formed two, that left the Prospector when she was nipped in the ice, we alone had survived the hardships, and diet of meat only, that had so long been our lot.

The remaining members of the crew went their own way, and have never since been heard of.

Having lit the fire, I ate as much seal-flesh as I could force myself to swallow. It was a food against which you take the deepest loathing if you have to subsist on it long ; and one of the main reasons that enabled Jim and myself to survive the others of our party was, that we always ate some of this horrid meat three times a day, while the others only ate when forced to by starva­tion, and so died one by one.

It was a beautiful calm morning, and the smoke rose up in a well-defined straight column, so that it could be seen for an im­mense distance. This gave me hope, and I went to ascend a

AN UNKNOWN PEOPLE. 3

slight rise, so that I might get a good view of m y surround­ings.

The hill was about half a mile from the hut, and consisted of some huge rocks covered with SDOW. W h e n 1 had gained the com­mencement of this eminence I saw, to m y horror, a polar bear coming in a direction that would bring him very close to m e ; he seemed alarmed about something, so I concluded he might be chased by another bear, and stooped down in the hope that he wouldn't see me; in this, however, I was disappointed, for he stopped an instant, growled, and then charged direct at me.

I was panic-stricken, and commenced to run toward the hut; though, had I thought, I would have known that the bear would overtake me before I got half way.

I didn't think, but relied on m y legs, instead of m y wits, to save me. I was so weak, that before I had gone many yards I tripped

and fell. In an instant I sat up; the bear was now within fifty yards of

me. In the distance I saw an object, like a boat upside down, coming towards us at a terrific speed.

I was too exhausted and terrified either to move or think ; I could only sit still petrified with fright.

It's all very well to think I was a coward—I was nothing of the sort. But I was nearly dead with starvation and cold, and so weak that I could only just crawl along; under these circumstances it was not wonderful m y nerve deserted me.

Physical courage is only for those who have health or strength ; I had neither. It seemed that the bear would have me in another four or five

seconds, for though the speed of the machine was tremendous, it had so very much greater distance to travel than the bear.

The huge white animal was almost on me ; the machine was still some two hundred yards away ; he rose on his hind legs as he came up to me, and as he did so saw the approaching vehicle: terrified, for he evidently knew what it meant, he stood trans­fixed, when, like a flash, it passed, almost within reach of him, striking him with a forked rod as it went by. The bear gasped, as a man would if he had a bucket of cold

water thrown over him, and dropped dead ; and in less time than it takes me to write, or you to read this, the machine had de­scribed a circle and returned to me.

It stopped as a skater does, when he ploughs the ice with bis skates.

A door opened in the side of the vehicle, which was a sleigh on four wheels, shaped like the half of a huge cigar cut down the middle and placed flat side down. It had a sort of centre board that it let drop when it wished, and so stopped itself.

B 2

4 BEYOND THE ICE.

Out stepped what seemed to be two fine men, wrapped from head to foot in skins, with only their eyes visible. One of them threw back the visor-like face-covering, and stood

revealed a beautiful blue-eyed woman. "This is the strangest Esquimaux I ever saw,"_she said, i n a

sweetly modulated voice. " Can he be from the middle Globe ? " " I think he must be," said her companion, a strong man in

the first promise of maturity, "but he seems very ill; shall I give him some food ? " " Please, dear Ion," answered the woman, who now knelt beside

me and took m y head in her lap. " Poor man ! " she said. " I wonder where he comes from ? " " I am an Englishman, madam," I said, faintly. " 1 have never heard of that country, but I am glad you speak

our language." She spoke with a childish wonder on her face. " Give him this, Edie," said the man whom I had heard called

Ion, handing a cup to the woman, who put it to m y lips, and I drank. It was warm, and the first palatable food I had tasted for very

many days ; it was delicious, and seemed like soup of the thickness of oatmeal porridge. I afterwards discovered that it was oatmeal with minced meat boiled in it. I felt much revived, and, with the aid of the woman, stood up. " Sir," I said, addressing the man, who stood sympathetically

near, " sir, I am doubly indebted to you for m y life. In the first place, you saved m e from this bear; and in the second, from death consequent on hardship and a diet of only flesh food, that has killed all m y comrades. Will you shake hands ? "

" With pleasure," he replied, with a pleasant smile. " I am very happy to have been of service to you ; but you are trembling all over." " Sit down," the woman said. She had seen m y weakness,

and, woman-like, had ministered to m y wants. " This is m y betrothed, Edie Shanna," explained the man ;

" and I am Ion Wolner Mura. What is your name ? " "I am Doctor Frank Farleigh," I answered, " sole survivor of

the first party of men who left the steamship ProsjJector. M y friend, Dr. James Richards, lies dead in yonder hut."

"Well, Dr. Farleigh, we'll skin the bear that you may thank for saving your life, for had not Edie seen him we would hare left you alone, thinking that the smoke from your fire indicated the presence of a party of Esquimaux."

" Let us give Dr. Farleigh the skin." " Certainly, Edie ; but let us first take it off the bear." " Let me help you," I said, and got up from the stool; but m y

knees were so weak they gave way under me, and I sank down again.

" You must not try to help, for you are too weak," said Edie,

AN UNKNOWN PEOPLE. 5

with kindly firmness. " You may either sit and watch us, or go into our electocar." " I will sit and watch, if you please." Edie went to the electocar, and returned with some knives and

a bone scissors, while Ion took off his gloves. Together they commenced to operate, the man doing the heavy

work and the woman assisting in every way; and so skilfully did they aid one another, that in some ten or twelve minutes the bear was beautifully skinned, the end joints of the limbs being cut off and the skin pulled over them, so that it was fit to be stuffed when they had finished.

"Miss Edie," I said, admiringly, "permit m e to congratulate you and Mr. Ion on the way you have skinned that animal." " M y name is not ' Miss Edie,'" she said, simply, " but Edie

Shanna, so please call me Edie ; and as m y Ion's name is not ' Mister,' you had better, I think, call him Ion." *' Yes ; Edie is right. But let us come to the hut." They put the skin, and me, in the electocar, and Edie got in, and

by touching some knobs, made it travel to the hut, while Ion walked.

Edie helped me, and we all went into the hut. The few things that were left we gathered together, and put

them, and the corpse of poor Jim, in the car ; we then all got in, closed the doors, and sped away. The nose of the car was glass, so that we could see the places we passed through. Edie lay in the front of the car, and Ion and I in the middle part, so that as we sped along he and I could talk. " Where are we going to now ? " I asked. "First we will go to the third magazine," answered Ion,

" where we will leave your weapons and/take in fresh power ; we will then proceed to the second out-station, where we will stay for the night; we will then again take power, and in the morning go to m y father's house in Zara." " Where is Zara ? " " Zara is the capital of the country of Zara, situated on the

river Voa, in the fertile region round the North Pole ; but we are yet about 260 miles from there ; however, as it is early in the day we will get to the first out-station by the evening, and to Zara by about fourteen o'clock to-morrow." " Ion, we are nearly there," said the woman. " I am glad, m y Edie." Our speed slackened, and we stopped near a rough pillar-like

boulder and got out. " Here is the magazine," said Ion. " Where ? " I asked, gazing round; " I cannot see it." " I will show it to you in a minute." Edie went to the pillar, and with a ruler-like stick cleared out

a hole that was in it, about five feet from the ground, and put in

6 BEYOND THE ICE.

a tube which ended in a glass disc with two strings crossing in the centre; this she looked through, the while beckoning to Ion with her hands.

Ion, who had taken a screw-like auger and a lever from the boat, put the screw in the position to which Edie directed him, and then commenced to turn its handle, and so screw it into the ice, when it fastened in something; he then took his lever and forced it up, when I saw it had wormed into a square plate, which left a hole about a foot across in the ice. Ion enlarged this hole, and I then discovered the door of the magazine, from which we took a fresh supply of electricity, and deposited all m y things.

W e then had some dinner and started on ; previously, I asked Edie to show m e how she directed Ion, which she did.

First, as I have stated, she put the disc-ended tube iu the hole ; in its centre two strings crossed; this she could verify by turning the disc round; if, then, the point where the strings crossed did not move, they met in the centre; otherwise, the strings were moved till the centre was found. The centre was now on the spot exactly over the hole into

which the screw was to go ; in case, however, the screw was not put in quite straight, the hole was placed at the botton of a fun­nel, so that it would be guided by its sides into its proper position. When it was wrenched out the gate of the magazine was exposed, and you could get what supplies you wanted. These precautions were taken to prevent the Esquimaux plundering the magazines.

W h e n the door of the magazine was closed, the ice was filled in, some water, boiled by electricity, thrown over it, and the place again became hidden. The Esquimaux had plundered one magazine ; so they were all

now guarded by electric traps. W h e n the cover was removed, a handle was seen, this would be caught hold of by anyone not in the secret, and pulled, in the hopes of opening a second door ; the pull, however, connected a battery, the shock from which was sufficient to kill the would-be thief. Again we sped onwards, and this time Ion directed the car;

we now travelled at the rate of thirty miles an hour, and the gleaming surface of the frozen snow seemed to be alive with millions of dancing sunbeams.

" W h y is your wife not with yon ? " said Edie. " Did she die ? " "No," I answered, "I had no wife, I came with forty-nine

other men, on an expedition, to try and discover the North Pole." " You will never do that," said Edie, and after a pause con­

tinued, " I thought all men had wives. Is it not so in the land you come from ? "

" N o ! is it so with you ? " I asked in wonder. " Yes ! " she replied unhesitatingly. " Our great L a w Giver

decreed that every fit m a n should be allowed to have a wife, and

AN UNKNOWN PEOPLE. J

every fit woman a husband ; so that as we all wish to marry, we of course all do, when we reach the fitting age." I was very weak, and the good food I had taken, made m e

lethargic; so Edie wrapped me up, and I soon fell asleep in the comfortable warmth. I was awoke by the barking of some dogs, and found we had

arrived at the second out-station. The out-station consisted of a big round tower, like an Irish

tower trebled in size, with a very pointed roof. This tower was surrounded by six large windmills, that circled it, at even dis­tances.

Three men and two women, had come out to meet us, one of the latter having a little child in her arms; they all were like very handsome specimens of the best class of Britishers. I was in turn introduced to each of them, and on turning to the

one who was carrying the child, it put out its little arms to me, vand when I took it,kissed and caressed me. For nearly two years I had not seen a woman, or heard the babble of a baby voice, so that the former looked doubly fair, and the sound of the latter was like the murmur of music to my famished ear. They were all very merry and kind, and even the great dogs

that gathered round us, wagged their tails civilly, though they were evidently willing, and able, to tear me to pieces, if their owners so desired them.

They took m e in to a big room on the ground floor, that looked half library, half kitchen. In one corner was a cooking stove, the flames and smoke from which went into two tubes that went right round the room in opposite directions, and met at an upright tube, which they joined, and which apparently took the smoke up through the ceiling. In the centre of the room was an oval telescope table ; while

on its walls were a double row of shelves, which contained labelled tins, and cooking utensils on one side of the room; and on the other, books, pictures, guns, and sundry nick-nacks. In this room was a woman cooking, whose peculiar dress and handsome face and person riveted m y attention. Her dress consisted of a tight-fitting knitted garment, that displayed to perfection her beautiful, shapely limbs; her feet were encased in black cloth boots, which had a striped bow below each instep ; she had only the natural curve of the waist, and her front figure was hidden by a loose stomacher that went from her neck to her trunks ; her features were extremely regular, and her beautifully shaped head was shown to advantage by the simple setting of her hair, which was brushed off her forehead and fastened in a knot at the back of her head.

Her dress was similar, though far superior, to that of some of the acrobats one sees performing in various parts of England and Aumrica.

8 BEYOND THE ICE.

On the others hanging up their cloaks and taking off their pattens, I saw that they were each dressed differently, seem­ingly ; and I found afterwards that this was the case ; they each wore what most suitably set off their good points, and hid their bad ones. Vona Gartha Morpha,the woman whose dress I have described,

came up to me. " Poor man, you are ill ! " She put me in a big easy chair, and asked one of the others for something for me, but Edie said,—

" Do not give him anything more to eat or drink, he has been half starved, and we must not overtax his stomach." Then she turned to me and asked, " are you strong enough to have a warm bath? I think it will do you good; and I will get you some fresh clothes."

" I should like it very much, you are very kind,'' I replied grate­fully. The two men took me away, and gave me a warm bath; it was

delicious ! They then dried me, and dressed me with some warm underclothes, and Turkish-like outer garments.

" The women will do your hair for you," they said. M y tangled hair and beard were knotted with the neglect of many weeks.

I was put on a big chair-bed, and watched them have then-dinner; they were merry as a lot of children, but kind tome as mothers to their babies. After dinner Vona and Edie sat on either side of me, and

combed m y hair and beard, while the others cleared away. Beside me on the chair was the child, she soothed m e with her

tiny hands, and baby chatter, which I could not follow. Very gentle were the women, and careful not to hurt me. W h e n they had unravelled the tangles of m y hair and beard, which they did with knives and combs, they oiled them with a violet-scented pomade, and bronght me a mirror that I might see myself.

I had seen my comrades grow gaunter and paler; their hollow-eyed faces, grimly looking from a frame of filthy tangled hair, till one by one they died ; but I had not realized that 1, who was one of them, had changed as they had changed. In the glass I saw my reflection, which did not seem myself. M y forehead looked higher, m y eyes were sunk in m y head, the bones of m y cheeks seemed bursting through m y skin, m y mouth was hidden by m y moustache, which, dandified by the fingers of the women, curled on the Orson-like beard, which covered m y breast. _ A little woman, who had been sitting beside or flitting about a

big quiet man all the evening, began to sing; and I fell asleep.