aciers. Our next camp for
the night was at an altitude of 4,100 feet above the sea.

On the third day we made the disagreeable discovery that we should have
to descend 2,100 feet, as between us and the higher mountains to the
south lay a great glacier which crossed our path from east to west.
This could not be helped. The expedition therefore descended with the
greatest possible speed and in an incredibly short time we were down on
the glacier, which was named Axel Heiberg Glacier. Our camp of this
night lay at about 3,100 feet above sea level. On the following day the
longest ascent began; we were forced to follow Axel Heiberg Glacier. At
several places ice blocks were heaped up so that its surface was
hummocky and cleft by crevasses. We had therefore to make detours to
avoid the wide crevasses which, below, expanded into large basins.
These latter, to be sure, were filled with snow; the glacier had
evidently long ago ceased to move. The greatest care was necessary in
our advance, for we had no inkling as to how thick or how thin the
cover of snow might be. Our camp for this night was pitched in an
extremely picturesque situation at an elevation of about 5,250 feet
above sea level. The glacier was here hemmed in by two mountains which
were named "Fridtjof Nansen" and "Don Pedro Christophersen," both
16,000 feet high.

Farther down toward the west at the end of the glacier "Ole Engelstad
Mountain" rises to an elevation of about 13,000 feet. At this
relatively narrow place the glacier was very hummocky and rent by many
deep crevasses, so that we often feared that we could not advance
farther. On the following day we reached a slightly inclined plateau
which we assumed to be the same which Shackleton describes. Our dogs
accomplished a feat on this day which is so remarkable that it should
be mentioned here. After having already done heavy work on the
preceding days, they covered nineteen miles on this day and overcame a
difference in altitude of 5,700 feet. On the following night we camped
at a place which lay 10,800 feet above sea level. The time had now come
when we were forced to kill some of our dogs. Twenty-four of our
faithful comrades had to die. The place where this happened was named
the "Slaughter House." On account of bad weather we had to stay here
for four days. During this stay both we and the dogs had nothing except
dog meat to eat. When we could at last start again on November 26th,
the meat of ten dogs