As they stepped from the protection of the _Sphere’s_ comfortable warmth the cold surprized them in its intensity, in spite of the heavy coats which they had donned for the occasion. A sharp breeze blew from across the polar cap. The horizon in that direction was partly hidden by the increasing murkiness which they had observed before from above. A short walk along the shore before resuming their way back to the capital was suggested. Accordingly the little company picked their way over the rugged bottom above the broken incline of ice. Queer shells and curious bits of rock were strewn about underfoot. Robert picked up a quantity of the prettiest specimens and put them in his pocket. Some were of the most beautiful tint, ranging from a delicate pink to an intense cerise, while others were of equally delightful shades of almost every color in the rainbow. While their progress was slow over the rough ground, they found that they had covered nearly a mile at the end of some twenty minutes. The sea-bottom offering little further interest, it was decided to return to the _Sphere_, especially as the sky was assuming a peculiar aspect. It seemed as if they were surrounded by a shrinking circle of darkness. The evident uneasiness of the Martians was anything but reassuring to Robert and his companions. All were plainly anxious to get back safely into the protecting walls of the _Sphere_. “I hope one of these Martian blizzards doesn’t surprize us,” remarked Taggert, eying the horizon speculatively, as they hurried along. The blackening horizon seemed to be racing toward them. “Frankly, I don’t like the looks of it,” said one of the Martians. “I believe we are in for a winter storm, which is likely to be none the less severe for its earliness.” “I have observed the progress of one of these polar storms from the Earth,” contributed Professor Palmer. “Within twenty-four hours it had transformed this very pole from a cap of insignificant size to an expanse of snow extending over nearly a quarter of the northern hemisphere.” A sudden flurry of large but scattered flakes of snow seemed to burst out of nowhere as he spoke. “Well, it looks as if you are going to have a taste of one anyway,” Taggert cried. The _Sphere_ was still quite plainly visible in the distance. But, probably because of the falling snow, the _Sphere_ seemed rather to have got farther away during the last few minutes instead of closer. Robert was conscious of a strange foreboding as he quickened his pace over the rough ground with the others. 18 The flurry quickly became a determined snowfall. The beautiful big flakes swirled round them dizzily, all but obscuring the _Sphere_ entirely from view. However, the ice would serve to guide them in case the _Sphere_ became invisible.