260 WITH SCOTT: THE SILVER LINING 



immersed in the question of stores to attend to much else. 

 But I was credited with a nimble tongue, and Simpson was 

 always crushing, with his inside knowledge of social problems, 

 so that the Progressive Party was by no means unrepresented. 

 We could always rally a strong colonial contingent in the 

 persons of Debenham (Australia) and Wright (Canada) ; and 

 never have I had such amusing arguments (cags we called 

 them) as during the Antarctic night. Woman's Suffrage I 

 have known argued ad nauseam from dinner-time (7 p.m.) till 

 midnight, when Nelson and myself were left still opposed, 

 and still full of argument. Prayers for peace never deterred 

 Nelson from preaching women's inferiority. Boots were the 

 arguments that usually drove him to seek his cubicle and sink 

 to rest. 



In mid-June there was bright moonlight, so Wright and 

 I decided to visit Cape Royds, and get a few things from 

 Shackleton's hut. I started with balaclava and wind helmet, 

 and two pairs of gloves. As there was no wind, and only 

 —8° temperature, 1 shed first the helmet, then the balaclava, 

 and then the thick and thin pairs of gloves ! It was about six 

 miles only, and of course much easier by the sea ice than via 

 the crevassed Barne Glacier (our route in January). We got 

 some gas tubing, which Day wanted, some ginger for Atkin- 

 son, tracing paper and a chisel for Charles, and I bagged a 

 carpenter's rasp. It reminded me of Crusoe's visits to his 

 old ship, for it was great fun poking about in cupboards, not 

 knowing what treasures might turn up. 



We soon turned south to our own hut, meeting Birdie 

 and Cherry also off to Cape Royds. On our left Erebus 

 looked like a great cone of white sugar against the blue-black 

 sky, where the moon shone resplendent. Charles rudely 

 scoffed at my poetic wish that Luna were a mirror and would 

 show us how the world were progressing ! 



Debenham .and Gran returned next day after an absence 

 of six days at the Discovery Hut. On arrival they found one 

 of our dogs (Macaca) lying in the porch. He had been lost 

 for a month, and was naturally pretty thin ! They fed him 

 on some biscuits, and then got the blubber stove going. In 

 the whole time they had only had three hours decent weather ! 

 In the same time we had only experienced three hours bad 

 weather. But every day was showing us more and more 



