sy scraping, and staring down into the ice. "Any one
would think--Oh, lor'!"

He jumped up, and ran away, too, and so did another sailor; when the
doctor and I went up to the spot, looked down, and were very nearly
following the example set us, for there, only a few inches from us, as
if lying in a glass coffin, was a man on his back, with every feature
perfect, and eyes wide open, staring straight at us!

"Wonderful!" exclaimed the doctor.

"Then some one has been here before?" I said.

"The ice must have drifted up," said the doctor. "We are the only men
who have penetrated so far. Quick, my lads; we must have him out!"

The boys didn't like the task, and Scudds was almost mutinous; but the
doctor soon had us at work, cutting a groove all round the figure; and,
after about five hours' chipping, we got out the great block with the
figure inside perfect, and laid it down in the sun, which now exercised
such power in the middle of the day that the ice began to thaw, just as
we awoke to the fact that the cold was nothing like so intense, for the
spirit-lamp on being tried burned freely, and the brandy, instead of
being like rock, showed signs of melting.

At first the men held aloof from the operation; but after a few words
from the doctor, Scudds suddenly exclaimed, "No one shall say as I'm
afraid of him!"--and he rolled his eye wonderfully as he helped to pour
hot water over the figure, which, far from being ghastly as the ice grew
thinner, looked for all the world like one of our own men lying down.

In about twelve hours we had got all the ice clear away, and the fur
clothes in which the body was wrapped were quite soft. We were then so
tired, that, it being night, the doctor had the figure well wrapped up
in a couple of buffalo robes, and, in spite of a good deal of
opposition, placed beside him in the tent, and we lay down to rest.

I don't know how long we'd been asleep, for, with the sun shining night
and day, it bothers you, but I was awoke by somebody sneezing.

"Uncle's got a fine cold!" said young Smith, who was next to me.

"So it seems!" I said; and then there was another sneeze, and another,
and another; and when I looked, there was the doctor, sitting up and
staring at the figure by his side, which kept on sneezing again and
again. Then, to our horror, it sat up and yawned, and threw its arms
about.

Every fellow in the little tent was about to get up and run away, when
the frozen sailor