i 9 o 4 ] DRAMATIC APPROACH OF THE SHIPS 259 



but in spite of all her efforts the persistent little " Morning," 

 dodging right and left and seizing every chance opening, kept 

 doggedly at her side, and it still seemed a chance as to who 

 should be first to reach that coveted goal, the open pool of 

 water at our feet. 



'Meanwhile our small community in their nondescript, 

 tattered garments stood breathlessly watching this wonderful 

 scene. For long intervals we remained almost spell-bound, 

 and then a burst of frenzied cheering broke out. It seemed 

 to us almost too good to be real. By eleven o'clock all the 

 thick ice had vanished, and there remained only the thin area 

 of decayed floe which has lately made the approach to the ship 

 so dangerous j a few minutes later the " Terra Nova " forged 

 ahead and came crashing into the open, to be followed almost 

 immediately by her stout little companion, and soon both ships 

 were firmly anchored to all that remains of the " Discovery's " 

 prison, the wedge that still holds in our small bay. 



'It seems unnecessary to describe all that has followed: 

 how everyone has been dashing about madly from ship to 

 ship, how everyone shook everyone else by the hand, how our 

 small bay has become a scene of wild revelry, and how some 

 have now reached that state which places them in doubt as to 

 which ship they really belong to. Much can be excused on 

 such a night. 



'And so to-night the ships of our small fleet are lying 

 almost side by side; a rope from the "Terra Nova" is 

 actually secured to the " Discovery." Who could have thought 

 it possible? Certainly not we who have lived through the 

 trying scenes of the past month.' 



'February 15. — The rapid passage of events has caught us 

 unprepared, and to-day all hands have been employed in 

 making up for lost time. It has been a busy day ; our own 

 men have been on board making things ship-shape and trim, 

 whilst parties from the other ships have been digging ice and 

 bringing it on board to fill our boilers. The small wedge of 

 sea-ice that still remains in our bay is cracked in many places, 

 and no doubt it would go out of its own accord in the course 



