Steve made a dart for the cabin, but stopped short, turned, gave the doctor a quick look, and then walked slowly to the cabin door, disappeared, and came back quite deliberately, adjusting the strap of the glass over his arm.
“Yes, that will be powerful enough for the purpose,” said the captain quietly. “Now listen: what I want to know is in what directions the lanes of open water lead. You will have an excellent view from up there. Try and make out whether there is open water right up to the land.”
“Yes, I see,” said Steve quietly; and he was about to take off his gloves.
“Stop! What are you going to do?” cried the captain.
“Take off my gloves. I can hold on so much better.”
“And perhaps leave the skin of your hands on the ropes. You do not feel the cold much now because the air is perfectly still and the sun shining brightly; but the mercury is very low, and it is growing colder. Keep your gloves on, and be slow and careful. Now go.”
Steve started once more, reached the main shrouds, swung himself up on to the bulwark, and instantly had his first lesson in the peril of his task, for all at once a foot glided along the top of the bulwark, and then went off and downward. But he had taken a good grip of the shrouds and saved himself, otherwise he must have gone overboard, and a curious sensation of heat came over him, as he at once began to climb with the ratlines feeling hard and thick like the staves of a ladder, while his hold upon he icy ropes was awkward and strange. And now he began to awaken to the fact that the job was a much harder one than he had imagined it would be, and felt more and more the necessity for the greatest of caution. Glancing down as he heard talking in a low, earnest voice below, he saw that Johannes was speaking to the captain; but it did not occur to him that it was about him till he had reached the main-top, where he paused for a few moments, holding on by the ropes.
“Hadn’t I better kick some of these icicles and this snow down, sir?” he cried.
“Yes; all you can, my lad,” replied the captain.
“Stand from below!” Steve shouted. And then there was the rattle and crackling of the pieces of ice he broke away, till he had made some clearance; and he was then about to start upward, when he became aware of the fact that Johannes was three parts of the way up to the top where he stood.