Roald Amundsen on the Inhabitants of the North Magnetic Pole (1908)

The seasons in these regions end just as abruptly as they set in. The Eskimo awakes one morning to find himself in the depth of winter, the sea is frozen over and the snow in places has formed drifts several yards deep. Now, there is no longer any excuse for delay in the building of snow-huts ; they have all suffered enough from the cold during the past night. Soon the whole population of the colony is out selecting building sites. The main thing is to find a sheltered place, screened to some extent from the wind and not too far from water, as otherwise every drop they require would have to be procured at the cost of trouble and fatigue. The condition of the snow also is an important consideration ; if it is not favourable the hut will not turn out a first-class job. The selection, therefore, of a good site for the hut is a very responsible task for the paterfamilias, and it often takes him a long time to decide on it. He carefully tests the snow with an instrument specially intended for the purpose, called a "hervon." This is a stick made of reindeer horn, straightened out like a long walking-stick. It is about four feet long. At one end there is a handle of reindeer bone and at the other a musk-ox bone ferrule. In the course of his examination he thrusts the "hervon" into the snow to "feel" its condition. It requires a very delicate sense of touch, developed by many years' practice and experience, to "feel" the condition of the snow.