352 THE VOYAGE OF THE 'DISCOVERY' [Sept. 



biscuit or the smack of lips which have closed on a succulent 

 spoonful of hoosh. 



This is a moment to be lived for — one of the brief 

 incidents of the day to which we can look forward with real 

 pleasure. The hot food seems to give new life, its grateful 

 warmth appears to run out to every limb, exhaustion vanishes, 

 and gradually that demon within, which has gripped so tightly 

 for the past hour or two, is appeased. The hoosh is followed 

 by an equally delightful drink of boiling hot cocoa, but even 

 as we gulp it down we feel that pleasure is drawing to an end, 

 for the Primus is now out, the steam of cooking that has not 

 passed away through the ventilator has frozen in glistening 

 crystals on the side of the tent, and the chill of the outer air is 

 again finding its way through the thin canvas. 



There is no time to be wasted ; the door is opened, and 

 two people plunge out into the open air, the cooker and pro- 

 vision bag are hastily packed together, passed outside, and 

 made secure from the wind by heavy lumps of snow ; the floor 

 is swept, and the miscellaneous assortment of clothing is 

 collected with as much discrimination as possible into the 

 corners allotted to the various individuals. Meanwhile the 

 sleeping-bag is dragged to the door of the tent, and by dint of 

 much coaxing it is eventually got inside. By this time it is 

 quite stiff and hard ; it crackles as it is forced open, and has 

 to be flattened out with the full weight of the body. What 

 was once the soft covering flap will now stand erect and rigid, 

 so stiffened is it with ice. Inside, the hair is matted together 

 and hard frozen — so hard in places that under the raps of one's 

 knuckles it resounds like a wooden door. Could any bed be 

 more uninviting ? 



Before we enter it we must have a look round. The sun 

 is skimming round below the southern horizon ; there is a 

 deep red flare in its wake. The sky is clear save in the south- 

 east, where lies a rather ominous bank of cloud. Are we in 

 for a blizzard ? Now and again a puff of wind sweeps over the 

 snow ; as it passes, the fine ice-crystals of the surface-drift 

 patter against the sledges and our legs and gather in little 



I 



