There had evidently
been no delay or intermission in the cold, white, silent business; to
look out-of-doors was enough to make the flesh seem thin upon the bones.
In spite of the snow, however, the little room was feverishly hot, owing
to the gigantic exertions of the small iron cylinder-stove. The round
aperture over the little door was glowing red, like an enraged eye; and
the quivering radiation of the heat from the polished black surface was
plainly perceptible to the sight. The room had lost something of the
neat and fastidious appearance which it had worn a few months before.
The colored drawing of a patent derrick, fastened to the wall by a tack
at each corner of the paper, had broken loose at one end, and was
curling over on itself like a withered leaf. The string by which the
ingenious almanac had been suspended over the mantel-piece was broken,
letting the almanac neatly down into the crevice between the wall and a
couple of fat dictionaries, which lay, one on top of the other, upon the
ledge. It was quite hidden from view, with the exception of one corner,
which was a little tilted upward, showing the hole through which the
faithless string had passed.
The terrestrial and astronomical globes bore the appearance of not
having revolved for a long time.
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