It was one o’clock when the explorer called a halt. On every hand was the field of ice and snow. But far ahead could be seen something which looked like a big iceberg. The sun was still under a cloud.
“I think we have gone far enough,” said Barwell Dawson. “We’ll camp here, and wait until we can take an observation.”
No time was lost in gathering cakes of ice and building a fair-sized igloo. The boys worked with renewed interest. Had they really and truly reached the North Pole at last?
“At the most we cannot be over a mile or two away from it,” said the explorer.
All were glad to rest, yet sleep was almost out of the question. The one thought of each member of the party was, “Are we at the Pole, or how much further have we to go?”
Early in the morning it was cloudy, but about ten o’clock the sun came out faintly.
“Unless it comes out full, I cannot take an accurate observation,” said the professor.
All waited impatiently and watched the sky. When it was a quarter to twelve the clouds rolled away to the eastward, and the sun burst forth with dazzling brightness.
“Now is our chance!” cried Chet.
All assisted the professor in his preparations to take the all-important observation. The old scientist’s chronometer was compared with that of Barwell Dawson.