THE VOYAGE BACK 433 



" Pennell in the Terra Nova found Amundsen's Hut (in 

 February, 191 1) to be about two miles from the water on 

 a ridge of old sea-ice about thirty feet high, but hidden from 

 the ship by another ridge of the same nature. 



" To the west was an indifferent lane half a mile wide which 

 reached behind the hut. Here the sea-ice was only a few feet 

 above the water except where pressure occurred. The ice in 

 the west of the lane was breaking out. Behind this about 

 four miles off was an eighty-foot cliff of Ice Barrier with a 

 path up in the south-east. I wouldn't like his winter, though 

 if he lasted through the autumn he might be O.K. afterwards. 

 Anyhow, we'll know in about a week now. We had a great 

 cag to-day. Some are still sure that Amundsen did nothing 

 at the Pole. The arguments are : (a) Amundsen never liked 

 sledging ; and (b) if he meant to go up another glacier than 

 the Beardmore, he'd have acquired merit and said so ! 



" Contrariwise (a) if he found going easy he might have 

 prospected up an easy one, perhaps in 191 1 ; and (b) if he'd 

 gone astray, the Fram would have come to us to investigate 

 this year." 



" On the 27th we finished off the cable. It runs to 7,500 

 words, of which the western party contributed 900. It is to 

 be delivered to the agent at Akaroa on Monday (first of 

 April). A funny day to send off a big cable, but it won't be 

 published till the 2nd in England, and ten hours later in 

 Australia. Meanwhile we loaf about till Wednesday morning 

 (minimum 36 hours), and then land at Lyttelton as soon as 

 possible." 



On the 30th the coal gang put in about six hours filling 

 the bunkers, so as to rest on Sunday. We shifted seven tons. 

 The gale had rounded the large lumps of coal, the impacts 

 turning them into egg-shaped boulders. The coal-dust was 

 packed into a hard layer which we could hardly break out 

 with a pick ! This is what clogged the pumps in 19 10, 

 and in that gale Teddy Evans was head and shoulders under 

 the bilge water groping for the mud clogging the pump-roses. 

 During Sunday we slowly cruised towards Akaroa. After 

 lunch we sighted a school of eight sperm whales. We turned 

 off and followed them. Mostly one saw their broad rounded 

 brown backs. Then one would raise his head a little and 

 blow off " steam," not up straight but diagonally forward. 



2 F 



