370 



WITH SCOTT : THE SILVER LINING 



could get no sleep. The wind died down about 5 a.m., and 

 the 10th turned out to be a beautiful day. We spent an hour 

 clearing the huge drifts off our sledges, which were completely- 

 lost to sight. 



As this was Sunday, I decided we would spend it in 

 tidying up our camp. Gran and I planted his sea-kale seed 

 in the evening. He said the Norwegians in Graham Land 

 (West Antarctica) got large crops of this succulent vegetable ! 

 I had my doubts, but it seemed worth trying. Behind our 

 camp was a huge cluster of granite rocks enclosing a small 

 cave. We collected some mossy soil and placed it in this 

 hollow, facing the noon sun. It seemed a bit wet and soggy, 



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Sec. - Ka_fe 



but Gran swore the seedlings would be up in a week and 

 edible in a month. 



" The skuas are squawking like fussy ducks all round us, 

 sometimes cheeping like young chicks ; but they don't lay 

 eggs, which is their main duty now." 



All the moss, which formed a regular peaty layer an inch 

 thick in some of the gulleys, implied plenty of soakage. But 

 it was a cold summer, and we never found any drainage when 

 we dug into the hollows. Moreover, the blackened appear- 

 ance of the moss made me sure that we were not seeing it 

 under favourable or even normal conditions. 



A small discomfort, which was to bulk largely in the next 

 few weeks, began to trouble me. During the seal-killing and 



