p. 61-62: The Christmas and the New Year holidays passed happily. We celebrated them with banquets, to which our hard working steward contributed many delicacies. A Christmas issue of the Arctic Eagle, our camp newspaper, was printed, Assistant Commissary Stewart making up the forms and running the press, and Seaman Montrose, who had once been a printer, acting as compositor. Nearly all the members of the party contributed to its columns and much amusement at its quips and personals was the result.*
*Footnote p. 62: On Sunday evenings the men were called together for a short devotional service, and a chapter or two read from the Scriptures out of an old Bible that had been the property of the Captain of the yacht America during her victorious cruise in the International races of 1851….
p. 68, in a list of Ziegler Polar Expedition activities at Camp Abruzzi, dated Jan. 14, 1904:
[No.] 22. We have not forgotten to celebrate the festivals of Christmas and New Year with enjoyable banquets and perpetuated the memory of the time by the publication of a six page newspaper.
p. 156: During the storms, which were many, and when the clouds obscured the feeble light of the stars and absolute darkness kept us imprisoned, the men made use of the excellent library after the hours of labour, and played chess or cards—usually listening at the same time to the strains of music from a Regina music box or a phonograph.
p. 181: Mr. Vedoe carried a bag of mail for Camp Ziegler and Cape Flora. Some postage stamps had been designed and printed and, before the departure of the mail, the men found pleasure in writing to their comrades at the southern stations and in pasting on the envelopes the expedition stamps. Porter cut a cancelling stamp on rubber and with it the postage was marked in the most approved and regular style.