270 WITH SCOTT: THE SILVER LINING 



" The result at Greenwich was ^ of 24 hours after the 

 noon of June 22 = 2I1. 24m. p.m. Our clock * keeps Green- 

 wich time (though we are not quite on 180 meridian), so that 

 this time by our clock was the critical instant of midwinter. 

 Hence Dr. Bill was the only one awake at that interesting 

 moment ! 



" However, Thursday's dinner on the 22nd was the nearest 

 to the exact time of lowest sun, so we were en regie. Meares 

 insisted that I was thus particular because I wanted another 

 feed on the 23rd ! This to me, who ate nothing and drank 

 less ! " 



Gran and I had a competition, as to who could guess the 

 most authors in the current volume of S. P. J 1 ., the loser to 

 give a dinner on our return. I stipulated " no alcohol," 

 but, on Gran's remonstrances, agreed to "Australian wines." 

 I thought I should win, for he hadn't contributed, and 1 

 knew three of the thirteen with some certainty ! I wrote out 

 a list, and so did he, and we asked Cherry to referee. He 

 was not to be drawn from the silence of the editorial chair. 

 Finally he said our bet was off, because we were equal. Teddy 

 Evans, however, declared that he knew most of them, as 

 they'd been discussed by Bill and Cherry in his cubicle. He 

 said I got ten right and Gran nine. At any rate, the first 

 suitable place for a dinner was my own town (Sydney), where, 

 of course, I was host, so that Gran came off best ultimately. 



Late in June I gave a lecture on the " Physiography of the 

 Western Mountains." Ponting kindly made two dozen slides 

 for me, and he put these through the lantern, with the addi- 

 tion of some maps I drew on glass, and one extra (by Gran), 

 which was a libel on the physiographer ! The problems dis- 

 cussed in this lecture have already been described in my sledge 

 narrative. 



On the 27th June the gallant midwinter expedition started. 

 Dr. Wilson was in charge, and was accompanied by Bowers 

 and Cherry-Garrard. Their object was to visit the Cape 



* Our local time (which we did not use), corresponding to our longitude 

 1 66° E., was 11 hours 5 minutes 46 seconds before Greenwich. Hence it 

 was midwinter at 1.30 on Friday morning of the 23rd by local time. This 

 experience of ours was a very practical trial of the Daylight Saving Bill. We 

 used to feel very virtuous when we turned out at 7.30 by our chronometer 

 while sledging, as we realized that it was really 6.30 a.m. 



