DIFFICULTIES WITH DEEP SNOW 341 



crossbars in soft spots. All the time they were literally plough- 

 ing the snow. We reached the top of the slope at 5, and 

 started on after tea on the down grade. On this we had to 

 pull almost as hard as on the upward slope, but could just 

 manage to get along on ski. We camped at 9.15, when a heavy 

 wind coming down the glacier suddenly fell on us; but I had 

 decided to camp before, as Evans' party could not keep up, and 

 Wilson told me some very alarming news concerning it. It 

 appears that Atkinson says that Wright is getting played out and 

 Lashly is not so fit as he was owing to the heavy pulling since 

 the blizzard. I have not felt satisfied about this party. The 

 finish of the march to-day showed clearly that something was 

 wrong. They fell a long way behind, had to take off ski, and 

 took nearly half an hour to come up a few hundred yards. 

 True, the surface was awful and growing worse every moment. 

 It is a very serious business if the men are going to crack up. 

 As for myself, I never felt fitter and my party can easily hold 

 its own. P.O. Evans, of course, is a tower of strength, but 

 Oates and Wilson are doing splendidly also. 



Here where we are camped the snow is worse than I have 

 ever seen it, but we are in a hollow. Every step here one sinks 

 to the knees and the uneven surface is obviously insufficient to 

 support the sledges. Perhaps this wind is a blessing in disguise, 

 already it seems to be hardening the snow. All this soft snow 

 is an aftermath of our prolonged storm. Hereabouts Shackleton 

 found hard blue ice. It seems an extraordinary difference in for- 

 tune, and at every step S.'s luck becomes more evident. I take 

 the dogs on for half a day to-morrow, then send them home. 

 We have 200 lbs. to add to each sledge load and could easily 

 do it on a reasonable surface, but it looks very much as though 

 we shall be forced to relay if present conditions hold. There 

 is a strong wind down the glacier to-night. 



* Beardmore Glacier. Just a tiny note to be taken back by 

 the dogs. Things are not so rosy as they might be, but we 

 keep our spirits up and say the luck must turn. This is only 

 to tell you that I find I can keep up with the rest as well as of 

 old.' 



Monday, December II. Camp 33. A very good day from 

 one point of view, very bad from another. We started straight 

 out over the glacier and passed through a good deal of dis- 



