1904] HOME ^99 



ingly over our port bulwarks. All Nature was smiling to wel- 

 come us, and all day long we passed in clear view of that 

 glorious panorama of the south coast which every sailor 

 knows so well ; one wonders how many hearts have swelled at 

 that sight ! 



At daylight on the loth we were south of the Isle of 

 Wight, and before noon the ' Discovery ' lay at Spithead, 

 surrounded by many craft, whilst on board we welcomed 

 those who had waited so long and so patiently for this 

 moment. 



There seems little to add. To attempt to describe the 

 hearty welcome which we received from our countrymen, and 

 the generous tributes which have been paid to our efforts, 

 would be beyond the scope of this book, which purports to 

 deal only with the simple narrative of our voyage. For me, 

 and for the small band who laboured so faithfully together in 

 the ' Discovery,' there has been one cloud to dim the joy of 

 this home-coming, for there was not one of us, I think, who 

 did not feel the sadness of the day which brought the end of 

 our close companionship and the scattering of those ties 

 which had held us together for so long. 



Yet although this inevitable parting has taken place, we 

 hope that as the years roll on we may meet again, and we 

 know that when such meetings come they will renew old 

 friendships and recall some of the pleasantest memories of our 

 lives. 



