pole without polar bears. Me for the frozen north then. I suppose
you'll tell me next there are no natives at the South Pole either."

"Well, there are not," rejoined Frank.

"But there are sea-elephants and ice-leopards and--" began Harry.

"And sea-cats, I suppose," interrupted Billy.

"No," exclaimed Harry, rather nettled at the young reporter's joking
tone, "but there is the ship of Olaf--"

Frank was up like a shot.

"Didn't we give our word to the Captain not to mention a word about
that?" he demanded.

"That's so," assented Harry, abashed, "but I just wanted to show this
young person here that he can't treat our expedition with levity."

"The ship of Olaf, eh?" mused the young reporter, "sounds like a
story. Who was Olaf, if I may ask?"

"You may not ask," was Frank's rejoinder. "As you know, Billy, we have
been frank with you, of course under the pledge of secrecy which we
know you too well to dream of your breaking. You know we are bound for
the South Polar regions. You know also that the object of Captain
Hazzard is to discover the pole, if possible; in any event to bring
back scientific data of inestimable value; but there's one thing you
don't know and of which we ourselves know very little, and that is the