THE VOYAGE BACK 427 



Simpson, " The Bible doesn't say so ! ' " Who was the 

 oldest man ? " Frantic chorus by aforesaid, " Methusaleh." 

 Simpson, " No, Enoch, his father, because Methusaleh died 

 before he did ! " Then Simpson quoted an essay by one 

 school. " Moses' mother was very cruel, and she put him in 

 the bulrushes, when she got sick of beating him." Asked to 

 explain this the boy said, "Well, isn't that what the Bible 

 says — when she could hide him no longer ? " 



During the next few days we were busy writing the cables 

 for the Associated Press, and I got Drake to type a report of 

 the last western journey for Captain Scott (which he never 

 saw). The hard-worked afterguard were now set to wash the 

 wardroom ! On the 1 5th I note — 



" Day, Meares, and Dennistoun are doing a bit of charing. 

 This morning Meares dropped a rag on me as I was working 

 below and missed. Then Dennistoun asked me to pick it 

 up, and as I looked up, got me in the eye. So I went for him, 

 and scrubbed his face muchly with soft soap, amid hilarity." 



At noon on the 16th we passed the Balleny Isles. We 

 could see Buckle Island about thirty miles to the south as a 

 snow-covered mountain occasionally showing through the 

 clouds. Only one or two ships have been so close to these 

 islands since they were charted by Balleny. We crossed 

 the circle that evening, and celebrated it by another sing-song. 

 Most of us sang something, Ponting's contribution with its 

 refrain of " Boil — my mother " (a study in wrong punctu- 

 ation) bringing down the house ! 



Very early on the 17th every one on deck was busy 

 furling sail when MacCarthy suddenly spotted an iceberg 

 dead ahead. Luckily we just had time to steer clear. We 

 had been having " iceberg-watch " for some time now. I 

 had been on duty from 12 to 2 a.m., though I could see 

 nothing through the snow. The ship was going about five 

 knots, and the white spume spreading from the bows was 

 about all that was visible. A berg shows up merely as a 

 greyish cloud under these circumstances. 



There were many visible during daytime. At noon, for 

 instance, we passed another much weathered, and resembling 

 a decayed molar tooth. Possibly this resemblance is based 

 on similar causes — a hardened outer skin cemented by spray, 

 etc., and a softer core weathering from above. 



