resh game every day. A quantity of powder
was divided between several bags; the compass, sextant, and spy-glass
were put carefully out of the way of injury.

On the 11th of October the sun no longer appeared above the
horizon. They were obliged to keep a lighted lamp in the lodgings
of the crew all the time. There was no time to lose; the
explorations must be begun. For this reason: in the month of
January it would become so cold that it would be impossible to
venture out without peril of life. For two months at least the
crew would be condemned to the most complete imprisonment; then
the thaw would begin, and continue till the time when the ship
should quit the ice. This thaw would, of course, prevent any
explorations. On the other hand, if Louis Cornbutte and his
comrades were still in existence, it was not probable that they
would be able to resist the severities of the arctic winter. They
must therefore be saved beforehand, or all hope would be lost.
Andre Vasling knew all this better than any one. He therefore
resolved to put every possible obstacle in the way of the
expedition.

The preparations for the journey were completed about the 20th of
October. It remained to select the men who should compose the
party. The young girl could not be deprived of the protection of
Jean Cornbutte or of Penellan; neither of these could, on the
other hand, be spared from the expedition.

The question, then, was whether Marie could bear the fatigues of
such a journey. She had already passed through rough experiences
without seeming to suffer from them, for she was a sailor's
daughter, used from infancy to the fatigues of the sea, and even
Penellan was not dismayed to see her struggling in the midst of
this severe climate, against the dangers of the polar seas.

It was decided, therefore, after a long discussion, that she
should go with them, and that a place should be reserved for her,
at need, on the sledge, on which a little wooden hut was
constructed, closed in hermetically. As for Marie, she was
delighted, for she dreaded to be left alone without her two
protectors.

The expedition was thus formed: Marie, Jean Cornbutte, Penellan,
Andre Vasling, Aupic, and Fidele Misonne were to go. Alaine
Turquiette remained in charge of the brig, and Gervique and
Gradlin stayed behind with him. New provisions of all kinds were
carried; for Jean Cornbutte, in order to carry the exploration as
far as possible, had resolved to establis