420 



WITH SCOTT: THE SILVER LINING 



" We spent a most wretched day trying to get it up. Not 

 a budge out of it, though you burst a blood-vessel ! The 

 seamen couldn't say (as before) that this was due to work on 

 a Sunday. We found that a cog had broken in the gears of 

 the capstan ; but when they again tried the steam winch to 

 aid the capstan it stripped off more teeth ! 



Another method was tried in the afternoon, which was 

 very slow, but not so spendthrift of human energy. It was 

 called "luff upon luff," and depended purely on a series of 

 pulleys ; whereby a small amount of force at one end of the 

 rope can slowly move a great weight at the other. The 

 capstan was now practically useless. So the small steam 

 winch was connected to a set of heavy pulleys (a " five-ply 

 purchase," I believe, is the nautical term) to which a claw-hook 



Diagram illustrating the way we managed to "raise anchor" by 

 upon luff," February 26, 191 2. 



luff 



was attached. This was hooked into the anchor-chain, at the 

 hawse hole, inside the dark foc'sle. I was halfway man, and 

 it was my duty to yell to the engineer at the winch, as Bruce 

 advised me he was ready. Another yell meant that the 

 purchase had done its part, and then Rennick put the capstan 

 brake on (which would still hold, luckily), and the claw hook 

 was taken off, and attached some links nearer the anchor. By 

 6 p.m. we had raised anchor. It came up as bright as silver, 

 and with the crossbar (stock) broken clean off ! 



All this time we were drifting to the north-west, and had 

 to keep up steam to hold her from yawing, and to try and 

 keep the cable from " binding " on the side of the ship. 

 Throughout the 27th we were nosing up against the fixed ice 

 off Castle Rock, trying to shelter from the blizzard. By noon, 

 on the 28th, the blizzard dropped enough for us to lie along- 



