Bal LIGHTING UP 51 
the primus into our bags to thaw them out, but it was not very 
successful. Cooking coming back was a much longer process, 
since we had to hold the cooker up, having lost its proper stand 
and the top of the outer cooker—though Birdie’s substitute was 
very good. 
After breakfast we would be pretty warm, and having loaded 
the sledge the next job was to get a bearing on to some star or 
the moon if anything was visible. This meant lighting matches, 
always a big business. To light the candle in the tent we used 
sometimes to have to try three or even four boxes before one 
would light. Steering was very haphazard generally. 
Then into our harness—and then four hours’ march or 
relaying, if possible. ‘The possibility depended on whether our 
feet got too cold, but the difficulty was to know when they were 
frostbitten. 
Relaying was at first by naked candle—later by hurricane 
lamp—following back our tracks in the snow for the second 
sledge. We never could decide which was the heavier. We 
camped for lunch if possible before we got too cold, since this 
was always a cold job. 
We cooked alternately day by day. The worst part was 
lighting up. ‘The weekly bag was very cold to handle. Gener- 
ally (often) we had to take off our finnesko or one of them to 
examine our feet and nurse them back if they were gone. 
Then four hours’ march more if possible. 
Footgear on as soon as possible on camping. Our night 
footgear was very good. 
It is also difficult already, after two nights’ rest, with a 
dozen men all round anticipating your every wish, and with the 
new comfortable life of the hut all round you, to realise com- 
pletely how bad the last few weeks have been, how at times one 
hardly cared whether we got through or not, so long as (I speak 
for myself) if I was to go under it would not take very long. 
Although our weights are not very different, I am only 1 Ib. and 
Bill and Birdie 3% lbs. lighter than when we started. We were 
very done when we got in, falling asleep on the march, and un- 
able to get into our finnesko or eat our meals without falling 
asleep. Although we were doing good marches up to the end, 
we were pulling slow and weak, and the cold was getting at us 
in a way in which it had never touched us before. Our fingers 
