36 THE VOYAGE OF THE 'DISCOVERY' [Dec. 



chopper, descended cautiously over a steep slope into the 

 rougher ice below. Taking advantage of the snow between 

 the ice-blocks we wended our way amongst them for some 

 distance, now and again stepping on some treacherous spot 

 and finding ourselves suddenly prone with our legs down a 

 crevasse and very little breath left. 



' At first we could get some idea of where these bad places 

 lay, but later the light grew so bad that we came on them quite 

 without warning, and our difficulties were much greater, whilst 

 the huge ice-blocks about us swelled to mountainous size in 

 the grey gloom, and it was obvious that we could make no 

 useful observations in such weather. We stumbled our way 

 back with difficulty, and, cutting steps up the slope, at length 

 caught a welcome view of the camp. 



'The dogs were more excited than they have been for 

 many a day ; poor things, they must have been quite non- 

 plussed when we suddenly vanished from sight. We can 

 make little out of the chasm so far, except that it quite cuts us 

 off from a nearer approach to the land with our sledges, so that 

 we shall have to depot our own food with the rest of the dog 

 food and trust to fortune to give us clear weather when we 

 return.' 



''December i6. — There was bright, clear sunshine when we 

 awoke yesterday afternoon, and we not only had a good view 

 of the chasm, but Shackleton was able to photograph it. It 

 looks like a great rift in the barrier which has been partly filled 

 up with irregular ice-blocks ; from our level to the lowest point 

 in the valley may be about a hundred feet, and the peaks of 

 some of the larger blocks rise almost to our level. The rift is 

 perhaps three-quarters of a mile broad opposite to us, but it 

 seems to narrow towards the south, and there is rather a 

 suggestion that it ends within a few miles. The general lie of 

 the rift is N.N.W. and S.S.E. ; on the other side the surface 

 appears to be level again, and probably it continues so for five 

 or six miles to the land ; however, it is certainly not worth our 

 while to delay to ascertain this fact. In the sunlight the lights 

 and shadows of the ice-blocks are in strong contrast, and 



