i9l WAYS OF DOGS AND MULES 235 



They would eat man or dog biscuits, tea-leaves and tobacco, ash 

 and various portions of garments, with the greatest of relish, 

 but they needed the utmost care and coaxing to be induced to 

 touch their ration at all. They were picketed by their forelegs, 

 as the ponies had been in the previous year, and they showed the 

 greatest ingenuity in getting themselves free and strolling about 

 the camp, testing various articles of the store goods. 



The same routine was kept by this party. The morning 

 march was seven miles in length; they then camped and had tea, 

 which lasted for about one hour and a half. When camp was 

 struck, they marched on for five miles more, completing the 

 twelve geographical miles for the day. Their speed on march 

 was favourable, compared with that of the ponies of the previous 

 year. Our surfaces were so hard and good that the mules did 

 not with their small hooves sink appreciably into the snow. 



The dogs' weights here having been much reduced, they were 

 able to relieve the mules to a large extent. The routine of the 

 march was now changed: from one to two hours after the mules 

 had started, the dogs followed them. The change in the dogs 

 and in their rate of progress was now wonderful: when they had 

 something to follow, and especially when the mules came into 

 view, they proceeded during the whole of the day at a full gallop. 



Abdullah, Hooper's mule, had constituted himself leader 

 throughout, and continued so until his return from the Barrier 

 towards the end of November. This was a difficult feat, as the 

 first mule has always the added hardship of having to break the 

 track. 



The surface was extremely good, hard, and almost marbled, 

 and the sledges followed the animals easily. 



Each night, on camping, a wall was built for the mules, con- 

 sisting of large slabs of hard snow dug in the Barrier; they 

 were a considerable amount of trouble, but afforded shelter to the 

 beasts from the wind and drift. The mules had so eaten their 

 covers that it required much ingenuity to make these useful for 

 protecting the beasts. 



The day's rest had done everyone good, and on a glorious 

 day we proceeded and soon finished the twelve miles for the day. 



On the night of the 6th and yth we started at 10.30, and, 

 on a slightly worse surface, did seven miles up to lunch. All 

 along this way we had been building cairns of snow at intervals 



