Travelling over the pack is as difficult as walking over the ruins of a town razed by an earthquake, but it is not particularly dangerous. Peary reached the North Pole that way, while Nansen left his ship in latitude 85 deg, walked about 100 miles north over the drifting floes, and then found his way south, by walking and by kayak, all the way to Franz Josef Land, 400 miles away.
Compared with these epic journeys the Russians seem to have no more than a stroll in front of them. "They would have to leave nearly all their gear behind, which they would no doubt be loth to do. They would almost certainly find a wide strip of Open water close to the coast. But the ice would ensure that this was calm. If they had a little boat they could cross it.
1f not they could surely build some sore of craft or even ferry themselves over on a small ice floe. Then they could wait. on terra firma to be rescued, or walk to Scoresby Sound. This plan may be less praiseworthy than staying at their post, continuing their observations and waiting to be picked up by aeroplane or icebreaker; but at least it would be safer, (maskee recurrent storms and kindred trifles), happily to love awaiting him on rocky and precipitous mountain ledge, with carpet slippers and the love light in her eyes, complete and unalloyed
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.