i9l A BIRTHDAY 101 



July 13. A lovely morning. The sky orange and saffron 

 in the north about noon. Spent the day carrying meat up. The 

 wind got back to its old quarter in the afternoon, and came on 

 to blow hard and very cold, punishing us badly as we struggled 

 up with the meat. 



The thin ice that had formed over the bay during the last 

 few days blew out. I do not think this bay will ever be safe to 

 travel on, so we shall have to take the Drygalski ice tongue route 

 and march later. 



July 20. It has been blowing since the I4th, but being clear 

 we have been able to get out every day. To-day being Priestley's 

 birthday we allowed him to do no work and served out six lumps 

 of sugar, a stick of chocolate, and twenty raisins. A sing-song 

 followed in the evening. Altogether a most successful day. 



July 24. The wind got round to the southward yesterday 

 and came on to blow really hard, and is blowing great guns now. 



July 26. The wind dropped suddenly, after blowing a hard 

 gale since the 24th. Priestley and I got down to our last kill and 

 found the bay ice had broken away to within 3 or 4 feet of the 

 carcases, but none of the meat had gone, for which we were very 

 thankful. In the afternoon it was blowing very hard again,, and 

 we all got frostbitten carrying up the meat. 



July 31. After two days of warm snowy weather with a 

 moderate S.E. breeze the wind has again swung to the west and 

 is blowing a gale. Signs and tracks of seals are numerous and 

 we have seen several swimming near the ice foot. I think our 

 lean days are over. 



August 3. It has been blowing the same hard westerly 

 wind, clear and cold. Browning got his hand badly frostbitten 

 getting sea ice. It ' went ' right up to the wrist and he was a 

 long time bringing it round. 



I walked over to the piedmont in the afternoon to look for 

 some penguins we had depoted there. The bay ice had held 

 well. On the piedmont it was blowing hard, with drift, but evi- 

 dently a low level wind, as half-way up the hills at an altitude of 

 about 1000 feet lay a thin stratus cloud, above which there was 

 no drift off the hills. The sky was very fine to the north. 



August 7. To-day and yesterday have been very warm, 

 the weather overcast, with snow and drift, and our door con- 

 tinually drifting up. Abbott and Browning improved the en- 



