The Work and the Workers
_Sunday, April_ 23.--Winter Quarters. The last day of the sun and
a very glorious view of its golden light over the Barne Glacier. We
could not see the sun itself on account of the Glacier, the fine ice
cliffs of which were in deep shadow under the rosy rays.
_Impression_.--The long mild twilight which like a silver clasp unites
to-day with yesterday; when morning and evening sit together hand in
hand beneath the starless sky of midnight.
It blew hard last night and most of the young ice has gone as
expected. Patches seem to be remaining south of the Glacier Tongue and
the Island and off our own bay. In this very queer season it appears
as though the final freezing is to be reached by gradual increments
to the firmly established ice.
Had Divine Service. Have only seven hymn-books, those brought on
shore for our first Service being very stupidly taken back to the ship.
I begin to think we are too comfortable in the hut and hope it will
not make us slack; but it is good to see everyone in such excellent
spirits--so far not a rift in the social arrangements.
_Monday, April 24_.--A night watchman has been instituted mainly for
the purpose of observing the aurora, of which the displays have been
feeble so far. The observer is to look round every hour or oftener
if there is aught to be seen. He is allowed cocoa and sardines with
bread and butter--the cocoa can be made over an acetylene Bunsen
burner, part of Simpson's outfit. I took the first turn last night;
the remainder of the afterguard follow in rotation. The long night
hours give time to finish up a number of small tasks--the hut remains
quite warm though the fires are out.
Simpson has been practising with balloons during our absence. This
morning he sent one up for trial. The balloon is of silk and has a
capacity of 1 cubic metre. It is filled with hydrogen gas, which is
made in a special generator. The generation is a simple process. A
vessel filled with water has an inverted vessel within it; a pipe
is led to the balloon from the latter and a tube of india-rubber is
attached which contains calcium hydrate. By tipping the tube the amount
of calcium hydrate required can be poured into the generator. As the
gas is made it passes into the balloon or is collected in the inner
vessel, which acts as a bell jar if the stop cock to the balloon
is closed.
The arrangements for utilising the balloon are very pretty.
An instrument weighing only 2 1/4 oz. and recording the temperature and
pressure is attached beneath a small flag and hung 10 to 15 ft. below
the balloon with balloon silk thread; this silk thread is of such fine
quality that 5 miles of it only weighs 4 ozs., whilst its breaking
strain is 1 1/4 lbs. The lower part of the instrument is again attached
to the silk thread, which is cunningly wound on coned bobbins from
which the balloon unwinds it without hitch or friction as it ascends.
In order to spare the silk any jerk as the balloon is released two
pieces of string united with a slow match carry the strain between
the instrument and the balloon until the slow match is consumed.
The balloon takes about a quarter of an hour to inflate; the slow
match is then lit, and the balloon released; with a weight of 8
oz. and a lifting power of 2 1/2 lbs. it rises rapidly. After it
is lost to ordinary vision it can be followed with glasses as mile
after mile of thread runs out. Theoretically, if strain is put on the
silk thread it should break between the instrument and the balloon,
leaving the former free to drop, when the thread can be followed up
and the instrument with its record recovered.
To-day this was tried with a dummy instrument, but the thread broke
close to the bobbins. In the afternoon a double thread was tried,
and this acted successfully.
To-day I allotted the ponies for exercise. Bowers, Cherry-Garrard,
Hooper, Clissold, P.O. Evans, and Crean take animals, besides Anton
and Oates. I have had to warn people that they will not necessarily
lead the ponies which they now tend.
Wilson is very busy making sketches.
_Tuesday, April_ 28.--It was comparatively calm all day yesterday
and last night, and there have been light airs only from the south
to-day. The temperature, at first comparatively high at -5°, has
gradually fallen to -13°; as a result the Strait has frozen over at
last and it looks as though the Hut Point party should be with us
before very long. If the blizzards hold off for another three days the
crossing should be perfectly safe, but I don't expect Meares to hurry.
Although we had very good sunset effects at Hut Point, Ponting and
others were much disappointed with the absence of such effects at Cape
Evans. This was probably due to the continual interference of frost
smoke; since our return here and especially yesterday and to-day the
sky and sea have been glorious in the afternoon.
Ponting has taken some coloured pictures, but the result is not very
satisfactory and the plates are much spotted; Wilson is very busy
with pencil and brush.
Atkinson is unpacking and setting up his sterilizers and
incubators. Wright is wrestling with the electrical instruments. Evans
is busy surveying the Cape and its vicinity. Oates is reorganising
the stable, making bigger stalls, &c. Cherry-Garrard is building a
stone house for taxidermy and with a view to getting hints for making
a shelter at Cape Crozier during the winter. Debenham and Taylor are
taking advantage of the last of the light to examine the topography
of the peninsula. In fact, everyone is extraordinarily busy.
I came back with the impression that we should not find our winter
walks so interesting as those at Hut Point, but I'm rapidly altering my
opinion; we may miss the hill climbing here, but in every direction
there is abundance of interest. To-day I walked round the shores
of the North Bay examining the kenyte cliffs and great masses of
morainic material of the Barne Glacier, then on under the huge blue
ice cliffs of the Glacier itself. With the sunset lights, deep shadows,
the black islands and white bergs it was all very beautiful.
Simpson and Bowers sent up a balloon to-day with a double thread
and instrument attached; the line was checked at about 3 miles,
and soon after the instrument was seen to disengage. The balloon at
first went north with a light southerly breeze till it reached 300
or 400 ft., then it turned to the south but did not travel rapidly;
when 2 miles of thread had gone it seemed to be going north again or
rising straight upward.
In the afternoon Simpson and Bowers went to recover their treasure,
but somewhere south of Inaccessible Island they found the thread
broken and the light was not good enough to continue the search.
The sides of the galley fire have caved in--there should have been
cheeks to prevent this; we got some fire clay cement to-day and
plastered up the sides. I hope this will get over the difficulty,
but have some doubt.
_Wednesday, April_ 26.--Calm. Went round Cape Evans--remarkable
effects of icicles on the ice foot, formed by spray of southerly gales.
_Thursday, April_ 27.--The fourth day in succession without wind,
but overcast. Light snow has fallen during the day--to-night the wind
comes from the north.
We should have our party back soon. The temperature remains about -5°
and the ice should be getting thicker with rapidity.
Went round the bergs off Cape Evans--they are very beautiful,
especially one which is pierced to form a huge arch. It will be
interesting to climb around these monsters as the winter proceeds.
To-day I have organised a series of lectures for the winter; the people
seem keen and it ought to be exceedingly interesting to discuss so
many diverse subjects with experts.
We have an extraordinary diversity of talent and training in our
people; it would be difficult to imagine a company composed of
experiences which differed so completely. We find one hut contains
an experience of every country and every clime! What an assemblage
of motley knowledge!
_Friday, April_ 28.--Another comparatively calm day--temp. -12°,
clear sky. Went to ice caves on glacier S. of Cape; these are really
very wonderful. Ponting took some photographs with long exposure
and Wright got some very fine ice crystals. The Glacier Tongue comes
close around a high bluff headland of kenyte; it is much cracked and
curiously composed of a broad wedge of white névé over blue ice. The
faults in the dust strata in these surfaces are very mysterious and
should be instructive in the explanation of certain ice problems.
It looks as though the sea had frozen over for good. If no further
blizzard clears the Strait it can be said for this season that:
The Bays froze over on March 25.
The Strait ,, ,, ,, April 22.
,, ,, dissipated April 29.
,, ,, froze over on April 30.
Later. The Hut Point record of freezing is:
Night 24th-25th. Ice forming mid-day 25th, opened
with leads.
26th. Ice all out, sound apparently open.
27th. Strait apparently freezing.
Early 28th. Ice over whole Strait.
29th. All ice gone.
30th. Freezing over.
May 4th. Broad lead opened along land to Castle
Rock, 300 to 400 yds. wide.
Party intended to start on 11th, if weather fine.
Very fine display of aurora to-night, one of the brightest I have ever
seen--over Erebus; it is conceded that a red tinge is seen after the
movement of light.
_Saturday, April_ 29.--Went to Inaccessible Island with Wilson. The
agglomerates, kenytes, and lavas are much the same as those at Cape
Evans. The Island is 540 ft. high, and it is a steep climb to reach
the summit over very loose sand and boulders. From the summit one
has an excellent view of our surroundings and the ice in the Strait,
which seemed to extend far beyond Cape Royds, but had some ominous
cracks beyond the Island.
We climbed round the ice foot after descending the hill and found
it much broken up on the south side; the sea spray had washed far up
on it.
It is curious to find that all the heavy seas come from the south
and that it is from this direction that protection is most needed.
There is some curious weathering on the ice blocks on the N. side;
also the snow drifts show interesting dirt bands. The island had a good
sprinkling of snow, which will all be gone, I expect, to-night. For
as we reached the summit we saw a storm approaching from the south;
it had blotted out the Bluff, and we watched it covering Black Island,
then Hut Point and Castle Rock. By the time we started homeward it
was upon us, making a harsh chatter as it struck the high rocks and
sweeping along the drift on the floe.
The blow seems to have passed over to-night and the sky is clear
again, but I much fear the ice has gone out in the Strait. There is
an ominous black look to the westward.
_Sunday, April_ 30.--As I feared last night, the morning light revealed
the havoc made in the ice by yesterday's gale. From Wind Vane Hill (66
feet) it appeared that the Strait had not opened beyond the island,
but after church I went up the Ramp with Wilson and steadily climbed
over the Glacier ice to a height of about 650 feet. From this elevation
one could see that a broad belt of sea ice had been pushed bodily
to seaward, and it was evident that last night the whole stretch of
water from Hut Point to Turtle Island must have been open--so that
our poor people at Hut Point are just where they were.
The only comfort is that the Strait is already frozen again; but what
is to happen if every blow clears the sea like this?
Had an interesting walk. One can go at least a mile up the glacier
slope before coming to crevasses, and it does not appear that these
would be serious for a good way farther. The view is magnificent,
and on a clear day like this, one still enjoys some hours of daylight,
or rather twilight, when it is possible to see everything clearly.
Have had talks of the curious cones which are such a feature of
the Ramp--they are certainly partly produced by ice and partly by
weathering. The ponds and various forms of ice grains interest us.
To-night have been naming all the small land features of our vicinity.
_Tuesday, May_ 2.--It was calm yesterday. A balloon was sent up in
the morning, but only reached a mile in height before the instrument
was detached (by slow match).
In the afternoon went out with Bowers and his pony to pick up
instrument, which was close to the shore in the South Bay. Went on past
Inaccessible Island. The ice outside the bergs has grown very thick, 14
inches or more, but there were freshly frozen pools beyond the Island.
In the evening Wilson opened the lecture series with a paper on
'Antarctic Flying Birds.' Considering the limits of the subject the
discussion was interesting. The most attractive point raised was
that of pigmentation. Does the absence of pigment suggest absence of
reserve energy? Does it increase the insulating properties of the
hair or feathers? Or does the animal clothed in white radiate less
of his internal heat? The most interesting example of Polar colouring
here is the increased proportion of albinos amongst the giant petrels
found in high latitudes.
To-day have had our first game of football; a harassing southerly
wind sprang up, which helped my own side to the extent of three goals.
This same wind came with a clear sky and jumped up and down in force
throughout the afternoon, but has died away to-night. In the afternoon
I saw an ominous lead outside the Island which appeared to extend a
long way south. I'm much afraid it may go across our pony track from
Hut Point. I am getting anxious to have the hut party back, and begin
to wonder if the ice to the south will ever hold in permanently now
that the Glacier Tongue has gone.
_Wednesday, May_ 3.--Another calm day, very beautiful and clear. Wilson
and Bowers took our few dogs for a run in a sledge. Walked myself out
over ice in North Bay--there are a good many cracks and pressures
with varying thickness of ice, showing how tide and wind shift the
thin sheets--the newest leads held young ice of 4 inches.
The temperature remains high, the lowest yesterday -13°; it should
be much lower with such calm weather and clear skies. A strange fact
is now very commonly noticed: in calm weather there is usually a
difference of 4° or 5° between the temperature at the hut and that
on Wind Vane Hill (64 feet), the latter being the higher. This shows
an inverted temperature.
As I returned from my walk the southern sky seemed to grow darker,
and later stratus cloud was undoubtedly spreading up from that
direction--this at about 5 P.M. About 7 a moderate north wind sprang
up. This seemed to indicate a southerly blow, and at about 9 the wind
shifted to that quarter and blew gustily, 25 to 35 m.p.h. One cannot
see the result on the Strait, but I fear it means that the ice has
gone out again in places. The wind dropped as suddenly as it had
arisen soon after midnight.
In the evening Simpson gave us his first meteorological lecture--the
subject, 'Coronas, Halos, Rainbows, and Auroras.' He has a remarkable
power of exposition and taught me more of these phenomena in the hour
than I had learnt by all previous interested inquiries concerning them.
I note one or two points concerning each phenomenon.
_Corona_.--White to brown inside ring called Aureola--outside
are sometimes seen two or three rings of prismatic light in
addition. Caused by diffraction of light round drops of water or ice
crystals; diameter of rings inversely proportionate to size of drops
or crystals--mixed sizes of ditto causes aureola without rings.
_Halos_.--Caused by refraction and reflection through and from ice
crystals. In this connection the hexagonal, tetrahedonal type of
crystallisation is first to be noted; then the infinite number of
forms in which this can be modified together with result of fractures:
two forms predominate, the plate and the needle; these forms falling
through air assume definite position--the plate falls horizontally
swaying to and fro, the needle turns rapidly about its longer axis,
which remains horizontal. Simpson showed excellent experiments to
illustrate; consideration of these facts and refraction of light
striking crystals clearly leads to explanation of various complicated
halo phenomena such as recorded and such as seen by us on the Great
Barrier, and draws attention to the critical refraction angles of 32°
and 46°, the radius of inner and outer rings, the position of mock
suns, contra suns, zenith circles, &c.
Further measurements are needed; for instance of streamers from mock
suns and examination of ice crystals. (Record of ice crystals seen
on Barrier Surface.)
_Rainbows_.--Caused by reflection and refraction from and through
_drops of water_--colours vary with size of drops, the smaller the
drop the lighter the colours and nearer to the violet end of the
spectrum--hence white rainbow as seen on the Barrier, very small drops.
Double Bows--diameters must be 84° and 100°--again from laws of
refraction--colours: inner, red outside; outer, red inside--i.e. reds
come together.
Wanted to see more rainbows on Barrier. In this connection a good
rainbow was seen to N.W. in February from winter quarters. Reports
should note colours and relative width of bands of colour.
_Iridescent Clouds_.--Not yet understood; observations required,
especially angular distance from the sun.
_Auroras_.--Clearly most frequent and intense in years of maximum
sun spots; this argues connection with the sun.
Points noticed requiring confirmation:
Arch: centre of arch in magnetic meridian.
Shafts: take direction of dipping needle.
Bands and Curtains with convolutions--not understood.
Corona: shafts meeting to form.
Notes required on movement and direction of movement--colours
seen--supposed red and possibly green rays preceding or accompanying
movement. Auroras are sometimes accompanied by magnetic storms,
but not always, and vice versa--in general significant signs of
some connection--possible common dependents on a third factor. The
phenomenon further connects itself in form with lines of magnetic
force about the earth.
(Curious apparent connection between spectrum of aurora and that of
a heavy gas, 'argon.' May be coincidence.)
Two theories enunciated:
_Arrhenius_.--Bombardments of minute charged particles from the sun
gathered into the magnetic field of the earth.
_Birkeland_.--Bombardment of free negative electrons gathered into
the magnetic field of the earth.
It is experimentally shown that minute drops of water are deflected
by light.
It is experimentally shown that ions are given off by dried calcium,
which the sun contains.
Professor Störmer has collected much material showing connection of
the phenomenon with lines of magnetic force.
_Thursday, May_ 4.--From the small height of Wind Vane Hill (64 feet)
it was impossible to say if the ice in the Strait had been out after
yesterday's wind. The sea was frozen, but after twelve hours' calm it
would be in any case. The dark appearance of the ice is noticeable, but
this has been the case of late since the light is poor; little snow has
fallen or drifted and the ice flowers are very sparse and scattered.
We had an excellent game of football again to-day--the exercise is
delightful and we get very warm. Atkinson is by far the best player,
but Hooper, P.O. Evans, and Crean are also quite good. It has been
calm all day again.
Went over the sea ice beyond the Arch berg; the ice half a mile beyond
is only 4 inches. I think this must have been formed since the blow
of yesterday, that is, in sixteen hours or less.
Such rapid freezing is a hopeful sign, but the prompt dissipation of
the floe under a southerly wind is distinctly the reverse.
I am anxious to get our people back from Hut Point, mainly on account
of the two ponies; with so much calm weather there should have been
no difficulty for the party in keeping up its supply of blubber;
an absence of which is the only circumstance likely to discomfort it.
The new ice over which I walked is extraordinarily slippery and
free from efflorescence. I think this must be a further sign of
rapid formation.
_Friday, May_ 5.--Another calm day following a quiet night. Once
or twice in the night a light northerly wind, soon dying away. The
temperature down to -12°. What is the meaning of this comparative
warmth? As usual in calms the Wind Vane Hill temperature is 3° or 4°
higher. It is delightful to contemplate the amount of work which is
being done at the station. No one is idle--all hands are full, and one
cannot doubt that the labour will be productive of remarkable result.
I do not think there can be any life quite so demonstrative of
character as that which we had on these expeditions. One sees a
remarkable reassortment of values. Under ordinary conditions it is so
easy to carry a point with a little bounce; self-assertion is a mask
which covers many a weakness. As a rule we have neither the time nor
the desire to look beneath it, and so it is that commonly we accept
people on their own valuation. Here the outward show is nothing,
it is the inward purpose that counts. So the 'gods' dwindle and the
humble supplant them. Pretence is useless.
One sees Wilson busy with pencil and colour box, rapidly and steadily
adding to his portfolio of charming sketches and at intervals filling
the gaps in his zoological work of _Discovery_ times; withal ready
and willing to give advice and assistance to others at all times;
his sound judgment appreciated and therefore a constant referee.
Simpson, master of his craft, untiringly attentive to the working
of his numerous self-recording instruments, observing all changes
with scientific acumen, doing the work of two observers at least
and yet ever seeking to correlate an expanded scope. So the current
meteorological and magnetic observations are taken as never before
by Polar expeditions.
Wright, good-hearted, strong, keen, striving to saturate his mind
with the ice problems of this wonderful region. He has taken the
electrical work in hand with all its modern interest of association
with radio-activity.
Evans, with a clear-minded zeal in his own work, does it with all the
success of result which comes from the taking of pains. Therefrom
we derive a singularly exact preservation of time--an important
consideration to all, but especially necessary for the physical
work. Therefrom also, and including more labour, we have an accurate
survey of our immediate surroundings and can trust to possess the
correctly mapped results of all surveying data obtained. He has Gran
for assistant.
Taylor's intellect is omnivorous and versatile--his mind is unceasingly
active, his grasp wide. Whatever he writes will be of interest--his
pen flows well.
Debenham's is clearer. Here we have a well-trained, sturdy worker, with
a quiet meaning that carries conviction; he realises the conceptions
of thoroughness and conscientiousness.
To Bowers' practical genius is owed much of the smooth working of our
station. He has a natural method in line with which all arrangements
fall, so that expenditure is easily and exactly adjusted to supply,
and I have the inestimable advantage of knowing the length of time
which each of our possessions will last us and the assurance that
there can be no waste. Active mind and active body were never more
happily blended. It is a restless activity, admitting no idle moments
and ever budding into new forms.
So we see the balloons ascending under his guidance and anon he is
away over the floe tracking the silk thread which held it. Such a task
completed, he is away to exercise his pony, and later out again with
the dogs, the last typically self-suggested, because for the moment
there is no one else to care for these animals. Now in a similar
manner he is spreading thermometer screens to get comparative readings
with the home station. He is for the open air, seemingly incapable
of realising any discomfort from it, and yet his hours within doors
spent with equal profit. For he is intent on tracking the problems
of sledging food and clothing to their innermost bearings and is
becoming an authority on past records. This will be no small help to
me and one which others never could have given.
Adjacent to the physicist's corner of the hut Atkinson is quietly
pursuing the subject of parasites. Already he is in a new world. The
laying out of the fish trap was his action and the catches are
his field of labour. Constantly he comes to ask if I would like to
see some new form and I am taken to see some protozoa or ascidian
isolated on the slide plate of his microscope. The fishes themselves
are comparatively new to science; it is strange that their parasites
should have been under investigation so soon.
Atkinson's bench with its array of microscopes, test-tubes, spirit
lamps, &c., is next the dark room in which Ponting spends the greater
part of his life. I would describe him as sustained by artistic
enthusiasm. This world of ours is a different one to him than it is
to the rest of us--he gauges it by its picturesqueness--his joy is to
reproduce its pictures artistically, his grief to fail to do so. No
attitude could be happier for the work which he has undertaken, and one
cannot doubt its productiveness. I would not imply that he is out of
sympathy with the works of others, which is far from being the case,
but that his energies centre devotedly on the minutiae of his business.
Cherry-Garrard is another of the open-air, self-effacing, quiet
workers; his whole heart is in the life, with profound eagerness
to help everyone. 'One has caught glimpses of him in tight places;
sound all through and pretty hard also.' Indoors he is editing our
Polar journal, out of doors he is busy making trial stone huts and
blubber stoves, primarily with a view to the winter journey to Cape
Crozier, but incidentally these are instructive experiments for any
party which may get into difficulty by being cut off from the home
station. It is very well to know how best to use the scant resources
that nature provides in these regions. In this connection I have
been studying our Arctic library to get details concerning snow hut
building and the implements used for it.
Oates' whole heart is in the ponies. He is really devoted to their
care, and I believe will produce them in the best possible form for the
sledging season. Opening out the stores, installing a blubber stove,
&c., has kept _him_ busy, whilst his satellite, Anton, is ever at
work in the stables--an excellent little man.
Evans and Crean are repairing sleeping-bags, covering felt boots,
and generally working on sledging kit. In fact there is no one idle,
and no one who has the least prospect of idleness.
_Saturday, May_ 6.--Two more days of calm, interrupted with occasional
gusts.
Yesterday, Friday evening, Taylor gave an introductory lecture on
his remarkably fascinating subject--modern physiography.
These modern physiographers set out to explain the forms of
land erosion on broad common-sense lines, heedless of geological
support. They must, in consequence, have their special language. River
courses, they say, are not temporary--in the main they are archaic. In
conjunction with land elevations they have worked through _geographical
cycles_, perhaps many. In each geographical cycle they have advanced
from _infantile_ V-shaped forms; the courses broaden and deepen, the
bank slopes reduce in angle as maturer stages are reached until the
level of sea surface is more and more nearly approximated. In _senile_
stages the river is a broad sluggish stream flowing over a plain with
little inequality of level. The cycle has formed a _Peneplain._
Subsequently, with fresh elevation, a new cycle is commenced. So much
for the simple case, but in fact nearly all cases are modified by
unequal elevations due to landslips, by variation in hardness of rock,
&c. Hence modification in positions of river courses and the fact of
different parts of a single river being in different stages of cycle.
Taylor illustrated his explanations with examples: The Red River,
Canada--Plain flat though elevated, water lies in pools, river flows in
'V' 'infantile' form.
The Rhine Valley--The gorgeous scenery from Mainz down due to infantile
form in recently elevated region.
The Russian Plains--Examples of 'senility.'
Greater complexity in the Blue Mountains--these are undoubted earth
folds; the Nepean River flows through an offshoot of a fold, the
valley being made as the fold was elevated--curious valleys made by
erosion of hard rock overlying soft.
River _piracy--Domestic_, the short circuiting of a _meander_, such
as at Coo in the Ardennes; _Foreign_, such as Shoalhaven River,
Australia--stream has captured river.
Landslips have caused the isolation of Lake George and altered the
watershed of the whole country to the south.
Later on Taylor will deal with the effects of ice and lead us to the
formation of the scenery of our own region, and so we shall have much
to discuss.
_Sunday, May_ 7.--Daylight now is very short. One wonders why the Hut
Point party does not come. Bowers and Cherry-Garrard have set up a
thermometer screen containing maximum thermometers and thermographs on
the sea floe about 3/4' N.W. of the hut. Another smaller one is to go
on top of the Ramp. They took the screen out on one of Day's bicycle
wheel carriages and found it ran very easily over the salty ice where
the sledges give so much trouble. This vehicle is not easily turned,
but may be very useful before there is much snowfall.
Yesterday a balloon was sent up and reached a very good height
(probably 2 to 3 miles) before the instrument disengaged; the balloon
went almost straight up and the silk fell in festoons over the
rocky part of the Cape, affording a very difficult clue to follow;
but whilst Bowers was following it, Atkinson observed the instrument
fall a few hundred yards out on the Bay--it was recovered and gives
the first important record of upper air temperature.
Atkinson and Crean put out the fish trap in about 3 fathoms of water
off the west beach; both yesterday morning and yesterday evening
when the trap was raised it contained over forty fish, whilst this
morning and this evening the catches in the same spot have been from
twenty to twenty-five. We had fish for breakfast this morning, but
an even more satisfactory result of the catches has been revealed
by Atkinson's microscope. He had discovered quite a number of new
parasites and found work to last quite a long time.
Last night it came to my turn to do night watchman again, so that I
shall be glad to have a good sleep to-night.
Yesterday we had a game of football; it is pleasant to mess about,
but the light is failing.
Clissold is still producing food novelties; to-night we had galantine
of seal--it was _excellent_.
_Monday, May_ 8--Tuesday, May 9.--As one of the series of lectures I
gave an outline of my plans for next season on Monday evening. Everyone
was interested naturally. I could not but hint that in my opinion
the problem of reaching the Pole can best be solved by relying on
the ponies and man haulage. With this sentiment the whole company
appeared to be in sympathy. Everyone seems to distrust the dogs when
it comes to glacier and summit. I have asked everyone to give thought
to the problem, to freely discuss it, and bring suggestions to my
notice. It's going to be a tough job; that is better realised the
more one dives into it.
To-day (Tuesday) Debenham has been showing me his photographs
taken west. With Wright's and Taylor's these will make an extremely
interesting series--the ice forms especially in the region of the
Koettlitz glacier are unique.
The Strait has been frozen over a week. I cannot understand why the
Hut Point party doesn't return. The weather continues wonderfully
calm though now looking a little unsettled. Perhaps the unsettled
look stops the party, or perhaps it waits for the moon, which will
be bright in a day or two.
Any way I wish it would return, and shall not be free from anxiety
till it does.
Cherry-Garrard is experimenting in stone huts and with blubber
fires--all with a view to prolonging the stay at Cape Crozier.
Bowers has placed one thermometer screen on the floe about 3/4' out,
and another smaller one above the Ramp. Oddly, the floe temperature
seems to agree with that on Wind Vane Hill, whilst the hut temperature
is always 4° or 5° colder in calm weather. To complete the records
a thermometer is to be placed in South Bay.
Science--the rock foundation of all effort!!
_Wednesday, May_ 10.--It has been blowing from the South 12 to 20 miles
per hour since last night; the ice remains fast. The temperature -12°
to -19°. The party does not come. I went well beyond Inaccessible
Island till Hut Point and Castle Rock appeared beyond Tent Island,
that is, well out on the space which was last seen as open water. The
ice is 9 inches thick, not much for eight or nine days' freezing;
but it is very solid--the surface wet but very slippery. I suppose
Meares waits for 12 inches in thickness, or fears the floe is too
slippery for the ponies.
Yet I wish he would come.
I took a thermometer on my walk to-day; the temperature was -12°
inside Inaccessible Island, but only -8° on the sea ice outside--the
wind seemed less outside. Coming in under lee of Island and bergs I was
reminded of the difficulty of finding shelter in these regions. The
weather side of hills seems to afford better shelter than the lee
side, as I have remarked elsewhere. May it be in part because all
lee sides tend to be filled by drift snow, blown and weathered rock
debris? There was a good lee under one of the bergs; in one corner the
ice sloped out over me and on either side, forming a sort of grotto;
here the air was absolutely still.
Ponting gave us an interesting lecture on Burmah, illustrated with
fine slides. His descriptive language is florid, but shows the
artistic temperament. Bowers and Simpson were able to give personal
reminiscences of this land of pagodas, and the discussion led to
interesting statements on the religion, art, and education of its
people, their philosophic idleness, &c. Our lectures are a real
success.
_Friday, May_ 12.--Yesterday morning was quiet. Played football in
the morning; wind got up in the afternoon and evening.
All day it has been blowing hard, 30 to 60 miles an hour; it has never
looked very dark overhead, but a watery cirrus has been in evidence
for some time, causing well marked paraselene.
I have not been far from the hut, but had a great fear on one occasion
that the ice had gone out in the Strait.
The wind is dropping this evening, and I have been up to Wind Vane
Hill. I now think the ice has remained fast.
There has been astonishingly little drift with the wind, probably
due to the fact that there has been so very little snowfall of late.
Atkinson is pretty certain that he has isolated a very motile bacterium
in the snow. It is probably air borne, and though no bacteria have
been found in the air, this may be carried in upper currents and
brought down by the snow. If correct it is an interesting discovery.
To-night Debenham gave a geological lecture. It was elementary. He
gave little more than the rough origin and classification of rocks
with a view to making his further lectures better understood.
_Saturday, May_ 13.--The wind dropped about 10 last night. This
morning it was calm and clear save for a light misty veil of ice
crystals through which the moon shone with scarce clouded brilliancy,
surrounded with bright cruciform halo and white paraselene. Mock
moons with prismatic patches of colour appeared in the radiant ring,
echoes of the main source of light. Wilson has a charming sketch of
the phenomenon.
I went to Inaccessible Island, and climbing some way up the steep
western face, reassured myself concerning the ice. It was evident
that there had been no movement in consequence of yesterday's blow.
In climbing I had to scramble up some pretty steep rock faces and
screens, and held on only in anticipation of gaining the top of the
Island and an easy descent. Instead of this I came to an impossible
overhanging cliff of lava, and was forced to descend as I had come
up. It was no easy task, and I was glad to get down with only one slip,
when I brought myself up with my ice axe in the nick of time to prevent
a fall over a cliff. This Island is very steep on all sides. There
is only one known place of ascent; it will be interesting to try and
find others.
After tea Atkinson came in with the glad tidings that the dog team
were returning from Hut Point. We were soon on the floe to welcome
the last remnant of our wintering party. Meares reported everything
well and the ponies not far behind.
The dogs were unharnessed and tied up to the chains; they are all
looking remarkably fit--apparently they have given no trouble at all
of late; there have not even been any fights.
Half an hour later Day, Lashly, Nelson, Forde, and Keohane arrived
with the two ponies--men and animals in good form.
It is a great comfort to have the men and dogs back, and a greater
to contemplate all the ten ponies comfortably stabled for the
winter. Everything seems to depend on these animals.
I have not seen the meteorological record brought back, but it appears
that the party had had very fine calm weather since we left them,
except during the last three days when wind has been very strong. It
is curious that we should only have got one day with wind.
I am promised the sea-freezing record to-morrow. Four seals were
got on April 22, the day after we left, and others have been killed
since, so that there is a plentiful supply of blubber and seal meat
at the hut--the rest of the supplies seem to have been pretty well run
out. Some more forage had been fetched in from the depot. A young sea
leopard had been killed on the sea ice near Castle Rock three days ago,
this being the second only found in the Sound.
It is a strange fact that none of the returning party seem to greatly
appreciate the food luxuries they have had since their return. It
would have been the same with us had we not had a day or two in tents
before our return. It seems more and more certain that a very simple
fare is all that is needed here--plenty of seal meat, flour, and fat,
with tea, cocoa, and sugar; these are the only real requirements for
comfortable existence.
The temperatures at Hut Point have not been as low as I expected. There
seems to have been an extraordinary heat wave during the spell of
calm recorded since we left--the thermometer registering little below
zero until the wind came, when it fell to -20°. Thus as an exception
we have had a fall instead of a rise of temperature with wind.
[The exact inventory of stores at Hut Point here recorded has no
immediate bearing on the history of the expedition, but may be noted
as illustrating the care and thoroughness with which all operations
were conducted. Other details as to the carbide consumed in making
acetylene gas may be briefly quoted. The first tin was opened on
February 1, the second on March 26. The seventh on May 20, the next
eight at the average interval of 9 1/2 days.]
_Sunday, May_ 14.--Grey and dull in the morning.
Exercised the ponies and held the usual service. This morning I gave
Wright some notes containing speculations on the amount of ice on the
Antarctic continent and on the effects of winter movements in the sea
ice. I want to get into his head the larger bearing of the problems
which our physical investigations involve. He needs two years here to
fully realise these things, and with all his intelligence and energy
will produce little unless he has that extended experience.
The sky cleared at noon, and this afternoon I walked over the North
Bay to the ice cliffs--such a very beautiful afternoon and evening--the
scene bathed in moonlight, so bright and pure as to be almost golden,
a very wonderful scene. At such times the Bay seems strangely homely,
especially when the eye rests on our camp with the hut and lighted
windows.
I am very much impressed with the extraordinary and general cordiality
of the relations which exist amongst our people. I do not suppose that
a statement of the real truth, namely, that there is no friction at
all, will be credited--it is so generally thought that the many rubs of
such a life as this are quietly and purposely sunk in oblivion. With
me there is no need to draw a veil; there is nothing to cover. There
are no strained relations in this hut, and nothing more emphatically
evident than the universally amicable spirit which is shown on all
occasions.
Such a state of affairs would be delightfully surprising under any
conditions, but it is much more so when one remembers the diverse
assortment of our company.
This theme is worthy of expansion. To-night Oates, captain in a smart
cavalry regiment, has been 'scrapping' over chairs and tables with
Debenham, a young Australian student.
It is a triumph to have collected such men.
The temperature has been down to -23°, the lowest yet recorded
here--doubtless we shall soon get lower, for I find an extraordinary
difference between this season as far as it has gone and those
of 1902-3.