Chapter 13
The Ice BankTHE Nautilus resumed its unruffled southbound heading. It went
along the 50th meridian with considerable speed. Would it go to the
pole? I didn't think so, because every previous attempt to reach
this spot on the globe had failed. Besides, the season was already
quite advanced, since March 13 on Antarctic shores corresponds with
September 13 in the northernmost regions, which marks the beginning
of the equinoctial period.
On March 14 at latitude 55°, I spotted floating ice, plain pale
bits of rubble twenty to twenty–five feet long, which formed reefs
over which the sea burst into foam. The Nautilus stayed on the
surface of the ocean. Having fished in the Arctic seas, Ned Land
was already familiar with the sight of icebergs. Conseil and I were
marveling a
