180 NORTHWARD 



other hand, it was absolutely certain that we had a 

 voyage of 2,400 nautical miles to Hobart, which had 

 been selected as our first port of call ; and it was almost 

 equally certain that this voyage would be both slow 

 and troublesome. A year before our trip through Ross 

 Sea had turned out almost like a pleasure cruise, but 

 that was in the middle of summer. Now we were in 

 February, and autumn was at hand. As regards the 

 belt of drift-ice. Captain Nilsen thought that would 

 cause us no delay in future. He had discovered a 

 patent and infallible way of getting through! This 

 sounded like a rather bold assertion, but, as will be seen 

 later, he was as good as his word. Our worst troubles 

 would be up in the westerhes, where we should this 

 time be exposed to the unpleasant possibility of having 

 to beat. The difference in longitude between the Bay 

 of Whales and Hobart is nearly fifty degrees. If we 

 could have sailed off this difference in longitude in the 

 latitudes where we then were, and where a degree of 

 longitude is only about thirteen nautical miles, it would 

 all have been done in a twinkling; but the mighty 

 mountain ranges of North Victoria Land were a 

 decisive obstacle. We should first have to follow a 

 northerly course initil we had rounded the Antarctic 

 Continent's northern outpost. Cape Adare, and the 

 Balleny Islands to the north of it. Not till then would 

 the way be open for us to work to the west; but then 

 we should be in a region where in all probability the 



