i9ii] PROSPECTS OF THE MOTOR SLEDGES 279 



been given to their construction. I am still very confident of 

 the possibility of motor traction, whilst realising that reliance 

 cannot be placed on it in its present untried evolutionary state 

 it is satisfactory to add that my own view is the most cautious 

 one held in our party. Day is quite convinced he will go a long 

 way and is prepared to accept much heavier weights than I have 

 given him. Lashly's opinion is perhaps more doubtful, but on 

 the whole hopeful. Clissold is to make the fourth man of the 

 motor party. I have already mentioned his mechanical capa- 

 bilities. He has had a great deal of experience .with motors, 

 and Day is delighted to have his assistance. 



We had two lectures last week the first from Debenham 

 dealing with General Geology and having special reference to 

 the structures of our region. It cleared up a good many points 

 in my mind concerning the gneissic base rocks, the Beacon sand- 

 stone, and the dolerite intrusions. I think we shall be in a 

 position to make fairly good field observations when we reach 

 the southern land. 



The scientific people have taken keen interest in making their 

 lectures interesting, and the custom has grown of illustrating 

 them with lantern slides made from our own photographs, from 

 books, or from drawings of the lecturer. The custom adds 

 to the interest of the subject, but robs the reporter of notes. 

 The second weekly lecture was given by Ponting. His store of 

 pictures seems unending and has been an immense source of 

 entertainment to us during the winter. His lectures appeal to all 

 and are fully attended. This time we had pictures of the Great 

 Wall and other stupendous monuments of North China. Pont- 

 ing always manages to work in detail concerning the manners 

 and customs of the peoples in the countries of his travels; on 

 Friday he told us of Chinese farms and industries, of hawking 

 and other sports, most curious of all, of the pretty amusement 

 of flying pigeons with aeolian whistling pipes attached to their 

 tail feathers. 



Ponting would have been a great asset to our party if only 

 on account of his lectures, but his value as pictorial recorder of 

 events becomes daily more apparent. No expedition has ever 

 been illustrated so extensively, and the only difficulty will be to 

 select from the countless subjects that have been recorded by 

 his camera and yet not a single subject is treated with haste; 



