CHAPTER XXIX. 



THE FOURTH WINTER AND SPRING. 



WE had several dogs which were no longer of use as draught 

 animals ; old dogs like these soon go down-hill, and so, in order 

 not to have to feed them, I let them all be shot. 



In looking over the provisions for men and dogs it proved that, 

 with our store of dog-biscuits and stock-fish, we could promise the 

 four-footed members of the expedition good commons for the whole 

 of the winter. 



With regard to our own provender I most feared that we should 

 fall short of butter and coffee. At any rate, I thought it better to 

 reason in this manner : ' Since we have been hindered in getting 

 loose this year, we may risk the same story over again, and there- 

 fore it is better to be economical with these particular provisions.' 

 Our after-dinner coffee, therefore, was struck out of the pro- 

 gramme, and the butter-scales were taken into use. The paraffin 

 was also measured out ; for the single cabins rather more than one 

 gallon a month was allowed, for the others one and a half ; the 

 lamps in the fore- and after- cabins burned, as hitherto, till eleven 

 in the evening. The coal for the galley and for both the cabins 

 was weighed out each week. 



In other ways things went on in pretty much their usual manner. 

 The winter passed in hard work for the coming spring season, 

 especially in the mending and improving of the material. Olsen 

 had a long and difficult piece of work with som e ofthe magnetic 

 instruments, the repairing of which took a good deal of time, and 

 required great nicety. In addition to this, he was constituted 

 maker of mines, so that we should be ready for ice-blasting in the 

 summer. Nodtvedt had his hands full preparing the skins of 



350 



