i86 THE VOYAGE OF THE 'DISCOVERY' [Mar. 



It was much later that we learnt his story. It appears that 

 he had left his companions intentionally, on finding that it was 

 impossible to stand alone in his fur boots. He had shouted 

 to the others that he meant to return to the sledges and 

 change into leather boots, and he was under the impression 

 that they had heard him and had quite understood the 

 reason. He made the best of his way in the direction in 

 which he supposed the sledges to be, but, as was natural, in 

 the thick snowdrift he could see no sign of them. For long 

 he wandered forward and backward, intent on his search ; but 

 gradually he got exhausted, and then he was conscious that 

 his footsteps were aimless. The last thing he remembered 

 was making towards a patch of rock, where he hoped to find 

 some shelter from the raging wind. When he awoke this 

 morning he found himself covered with snow, but, on raising 

 himself on his elbow, he saw that he was on a slope under 

 Castle Rock, and, glancing about him, recognised Crater Hill 

 and other known eminences, and realised exactly where he 

 was and the direction in which the ship lay. He started 

 towards her, but found himself so stiff that for a long way he 

 was obliged to crawl on hands and knees. But the stiffness 

 wore off, and he was able to raise himself at length, and, with 

 some rests, to reach the slope where we had first seen him. 



* He must have lain under the snow for thirty- six hours, 

 but it took a long time to persuade him of this ; he found 

 it hard to believe that this was the second day after the 

 accident. I cannot but believe that his preservation is unique, 

 and almost miraculous. The boy, who is only eighteen, has 

 been forty hours without food, and sixty without warm food ; 

 he must possess great stamina to have come through without 

 hurt. The incident is also a tribute to our clothing. He was 

 luckily wearing a heavy woollen blouse and complete gaberdine 

 wind-covering over his warm underclothing. Unconsciously 

 he withdrew his arms inside the blouse, and covered the 

 opening in his thick helmet, and so saved his hands and face 

 from freezing. The fur boots alone saved his feet from the 

 same fate, and the snow, which rapidly covered him, must 



