8 SCOTT'S LAST EXPEDITION (December 



ing the ponies on their legs. Cases of petrol, forage, &c., began 

 to brealc loose on the upper deck; the principal trouble was 

 caused by the loose coal-bags, which were bodily lifted by the seas 

 and swung against the lashed cases. ' You know how carefully 

 everything had been lashed, but no lashings could have withstood 

 the onslaught of these coal sacks for long '; they acted like bat- 

 tering rams. ' There was nothing for it but to grapple with the 

 evil, and nearly all hands were labouring for hours in the waist 

 of the ship, heaving coal sacks overboard and re-lashing the 

 petrol cases, &c., in the best manner possible under such difficult 

 and dangerous circumstances. The seas were continually break- 

 ing over these people and now and again they would be com- 

 pletely submerged. At such times they had to cling for dear life 

 to some fixture to prevent themselves being washed overboard, 

 and with coal bags and loose cases washing about, there was 

 every risk of such hold being torn away. 



' No sooner was some semblance of order restored than some 

 exceptionally heavy wave would tear away the- lashing and the 

 work had to be done all over again.' 



The night wore on, the sea and wind ever rising, and the 

 ship ever plunging more distractedly; we shortened sail to main 

 topsail and staysail, stopped engines and hove to, but to little 

 purpose. Tales of ponies down came frequently from forward, 

 where Oates and Atkinson laboured through the entire night. 

 Worse was to follow, much worse — a report from the engine- 

 room that the pumps had choked and the water risen over the 

 gratings. 



From this moment, about 4 A.M., the engine-room became 

 the centre of interest. The water gained in spite of every effort. 

 Lashley, to his neck in rushing water, stuck gamely to the work 

 of clearing suctions. For a time, with donkey engine and bilge 

 pump sucking, it looked as though the water would be got under; 

 but the hope was short-lived: five minutes of pumping invariably 

 led to the same result — a general choking of the pumps. 



The outlook appeared grim. The amount of water which 

 was being made, with the ship so roughly handled, was most 

 uncertain. ' We knew that normally the ship was not making 

 much water, but we also knew that a considerable part of the 

 water washing over the upper deck must be finding its way below; 

 the decks were leaking in streams. The ship was very deeply 



