Jules Verne

“ A great number of islands lie between Baring Island and Point Beecher, scattered in the midst of the ice-fields; the ice-streams crowd in great numbers in the little straits into which they divide the sea; when the weather is cold they have a tendency to accumulate; here and there hummocks were forming, and it was easy to see that the floes, already harder and more crowded, would, under the influence of the first frosts, soon form an impenetrable mass.
It was with great difficulty that the Forward made her way through the whirling snow. ”

“ Those birds have no supply of food, as we have, and they must support themselves elsewhere. But sailors, with a good deck under the feet, ought to go to the end of the world.”
“You hope, then, that Hatteras will succeed in his projects?”
“He will succeed. Doctor.”
“I agree with you, Johnson, even if only one faithful man accompanies him—”
“There will be two of us!”
“Yes, Johnson,” the doctor answered, pressing the brave sailor's hand. ”

“ While he was dozing in this way a huge, dark cloud was climbing across the sky, throwing a deep shadow over the sea.
It is difficult to imagine the great speed with which hurricanes arise in the arctic seas. The vapors which rise under the equator are condensed above the great glaciers of the North, and large masses of air are needed to take their place. This can explain the severity of arctic storms.
At the first shock of the wind the captain and his friends awoke from their sleep, ready to manage the launch.
The waves were high and steep. ”

“ Still, no one of these men raised a single objection, nor suggested prudence. They were seized with the madness of danger. Thirst for the unknown took possession of them. They were going along, not blinded, but blindly, finding their speed only too slow for their impatience. ”

“ The Forward had not made thirty miles in ten days.
Then the wind flew around to the north, and the engine was started once more. Hatteras still hoped to find an open sea beyond latitude 77°, such as Edward Belcher had seen. ”