Farthest North: The Life and Explorations of Lieutenant James Booth Lockwood, of the Greely Arctic ExpeditionLanman, Charles
History
Farthest North: The Life and Explorations of Lieutenant James Booth Lockwood, of the Greely Arctic Expedition
Lanman, Charles
Arctic regions; Lady Franklin Bay Expedition (1881-1884); Lockwood, James Booth, 1852-1884
Thanksgiving-day, with its games, sports, and dinner, gave them a
pleasant variety. First, came the snow-shoe race of one hundred yards,
Brainard, victor. Next, the foot-race, with many contestants, but Ellis
coming out ahead. Then the dog-team race to Dutch Island and return,
under the Esquimaux Jans and Frederick, the latter, victor. And,
finally, a shooting-match, necessarily at short range, and with torches,
Henry, victor. These and other out-door exercises were followed by the
grand feature of the day, the Thanksgiving dinner, and not a poor one
either, even for a lower latitude than eighty-two degrees. In the
evening Lieutenant Greely gave out prizes to the victors and second
best, Rice acting as master of ceremonies, rigged out in swallow-tail
coat, black pantaloons, white vest, and “boiled” shirt. The mercury
froze on that day, and Lieutenant Greely brought in a teacupful, which
looked like lead as it comes from the mold. The moon also made its
appearance, and all fully appreciated the blessing of this luminary.
“What a change,” exclaimed Lockwood, “when she comes forth in all her
beauty and loveliness, flooding the landscape with her refulgent beams
and cheering the drooping spirits of benighted mortals! Even the poor
dogs feel her influence!” On the 1st of December, they had an almost
total eclipse of the moon, more remarkable there than an eclipse of the
sun elsewhere. During the phenomenon, the exposed part of the disk was
of a dull-red color. Lockwood took the altitude of the moon while
crossing the meridian, using a saucer of molasses as an artificial
horizon. She flooded the whole region with a light, electric in
appearance, and causing deep shadows. In the evening they were treated
to a display of mock moons, with a circular band of bright light
connecting them, and several bands or ribbons of light at various
angles, but all passing through the moon.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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