THE GRANITE HARBOUR EXPEDITION 363 



flapping, and shaking down young avalanches, and it has been 

 going strong ever since. 



" There is always a strong bulge in on the windward 

 (S.E.) side, and slighter bulges at the two lateral tent 

 segments. Then the door, if properly placed, tends to blow 

 out, and the laterals next to it do most of the flapping, and 

 make a deuce of a row. 



'* 2 p.m. Still blizzing strongly ; there have been one or 

 two lulls of a few minutes ; but they don't seem to mean 

 much. It is snowing furiously, too ; pattering on the tent 

 like rain on wooden shingles. If you budge from the tent 

 (Debenham had to get a note-book) you get very cold, because 

 the drift melts and wets you at this temperature ( 4- 2 3 F.). 

 We had a meal about 1 1 a.m., Gran cooking a good bovril- 

 pemmican, with a large supply of broken biscuit therein. 

 This strong south-east wind blows practically direct from Cape 

 Roberts on to the tongue on our lee, and so I do not much 

 fear it will shift out any ice. Anyhow, we can't move, and I 

 am learning to take these blizzes philosophically. Besides, 

 the bags are dry and warm, and when I tire of writing the 

 diary I snooze a bit, and then read Harker's ' Petrology ' 

 (Deb's), and then snooze, and then read * Poe's Tales ' 

 (too fantastic and oriental to please me are most of them), 

 or ' Martin Chuzzlewit,' or do some German grammar. 

 Forde is actually reading something. He has tackled 'The 

 Mysterious Island ' which Gran has nearly finished at last. 

 Deb started to work out a latitude, but is now wrapped 

 in ' Morfus.' Last night's hoosh was an enormous success, 

 2^ pots of Forde's concentrated seal hoosh, mixed with water 

 and meal, made a top-hole hoosh — very tasty, and all indigenous. 



" 6 p.m. The tent is beastly sloppy. We have just 

 finished our lunch at 6 p.m., and if we can't get away, that is 

 our last meal to-day ! To-day is a queer camp, the first down 

 here where the tent has dripped on us, when no Primus is 

 going. We have put the cooker under the tied-up door, and 

 it is filling, I see ! Forde is dressing his finger with a pen- 

 knife, and Deb keeping warm very sensibly in his bag. 



"December 7, 19 11. — Slept pretty well. Dreams, as usual, 

 furnished some conversation 'twixt Gran and me, and occa- 

 sionally Deb. I had a very vivid one (or two) after two pots 

 of seal fry the other night. 



