390 WITH SCOTT : THE SILVER LINING 



blocks. At 2000 feet only the dolerite blocks were seen, so 

 that I feel sure that the sandstone crops out inside the hollow 

 of the mount (between the granite and dolerite) as well as on 

 its western face. 



At 1.40 I reached the top and found that it was 3000 feet 

 above the tent. I set up the theodolite and obtained a fine 

 series of angles. Sighting on Gran's peak, which he had just 

 surmounted, I found it was two degrees lower, which I 

 estimated at about a hundred feet, whereat he was somewhat 

 crestfallen. However, he walked across after obtaining a 

 splendid set of photos of the landscape spread out before us. 

 The actual summit was fairly flat for a few yards, with a 

 thousand-feet precipice on the south and west. Far out to 

 sea we could see miles of open water, especially to the south, 

 with floes drifting in it, but it did not seem much nearer than 

 a month ago. 



To the south a deep fiord-like valley seemed to pierce 

 right through the Gonville Range. It was of course filled 

 with ice, and was, I think, what the Americans call a tran- 

 section glacier. Probably it connected the Mackay Glacier 

 with the Debenham Glacier. The cliffs at its west portal were 

 cut into giant " forts," and bands of beacon sandstone showed 

 clearly enough above the granite. 



To the south lay the Sperm nunakol. It was only a mile 

 away, and we seemed to be right over it. It showed a flat 

 surface covered with debris much like the Flat Iron. The 

 Peg Top nunakol seemed to have lost its knob-like appear- 

 ance. It was somewhat T-shaped, the front bar rising like a 

 crocodile's head from the covering of ice. To the south of 

 this rock island there seemed an easy route up to the Plateau 

 — good enough for ponies, if the first step up to the " Flat 

 Iron " could be negotiated. 



A very high mountain, possibly 10,000 feet, showed to 

 the west. We could not estimate its distance properly, for all 

 our survey angles to it were so acute. 



After spending two and a half hours on the summit we 

 hurried back to the camp, and found that Debenham had 

 passed a useful if uneventful day. 



On the 6th of January we took down the tent and trans- 

 ported our gear across the rugged moraines to the sledge. 

 While I was packing the fish scales in cotton-wool, the other 



