[Illustration]
Kane was a doctor in one of the war ships of the United States. He had
sailed about the world a great deal.
When he heard that ships were to be sent into the icy seas of the
north, he asked to be sent along. He went the first time as a doctor.
Then he wanted to find out more about the frozen ocean. So he went
again as captain of a ship. His ship was called the “Advance.”
Kane sailed into the icy seas. His ship was driven far into the ice by
a fu-ri-ous storm. She was crowded by ice-bergs. At one time she was
lifted clear out of the water. The ship seemed ready to fall over on
her side. But the ice let her down again. Then she was squeezed till
the men thought that she would be crushed like an egg shell At last the
storm stopped. Then came the awful cold. The ship was frozen into the
ice. The ice never let go of her. She was farther north than any ship
had ever been before. But she was so fast in the ice that she never
could get away.
In that part of the world it is night nearly all winter. For months
there was no sun at all. Daylight came again. It was now summer, but it
did not get warm. Doctor Kane took sleds, and went about on the ice to
see what he could see. The sleds were drawn by large dogs. But nearly
all of the dogs died in the long winter night.
[Illustration: A Dog Sled]
Doctor Kane thought that the ice would melt. He wanted to get the ship
out. But the ice did not melt at all.
At last the summer passed away. Another awful winter came. The sun did
not rise any more. It was dark for months and months. The men were ill.
Some of them died. They were much dis-cour-aged. But Kane kept up his
heart, and did the best he could.
At last the least little streak of light could be seen. It got a little
lighter each day. But the sick men down in the cabin of the ship could
not see the light.
Doctor Kane said to himself, “If my poor men could see this sunlight,
it would cheer them up. It might save their lives.” But they were too
ill to get out where they could see the sun. It would be many days
before the sun would shine into the cabin of the ship. The men might
die before that time.
So Doctor Kane took some looking glasses up to the deck or top of the
ship. He fixed one of these so it would catch the light of the sun.
Then he fixed another so that the first one would throw the light on
this one. The last one would throw the sunlight down into the cabin
where the sick men were.
One day the poor fellows were ready to give up. Then the sun fell on
the looking glasses, and flashed down into the cabin. It was the first
daylight the sick men had seen for months. The long winter night was
over. Think how happy they were!