I902 ] A HUGE ICE-CLIFF 143 



wall of ice, the highest that we were ever fated to see in the 

 Antarctic Regions ; as we passed by this huge stationary object, 

 we could see how strongly the current was making with us : it 

 increased our speed by at least two knots. As night approached, 

 the wind, which had been increasing throughout the day, de- 

 scended on us with great violence from the high ice-cliffs, filled 

 with whirling clouds of drifting snowdust swept from the plains 

 beyond; the temperature fell to 5 , and soon the rigging was 

 festooned with icicles and the decks covered with a thin layer 

 of ice. The date corresponded with August 2 in England, 

 and we wondered how flannel-clad holiday makers would enjoy 

 an Antarctic summer, and, as this sort of thing was the Antarctic 

 summer, what the Antarctic winter would be like. 



We steered away from the ice-wall and escaped from the 

 clouds of drift, only to get into a sharp sea where the wind 

 raised clouds of spray which froze solid as it fell. 



Later in the night the wind fell to a flat calm, and before 

 the temperature rose the whole sea was covered with pancake 

 ice, but as the sun gained power the temperature crept up to 

 22 , and with a slight breeze the young ice quickly vanished. 

 In reflecting on recent experiences, although at this time our 

 ideas were not thoroughly sifted, I vaguely realised that in- 

 dications pointed to the fact that the Great Barrier did not 

 rest on land, and since the ice which we had seen to the east 

 undoubtedly did, there must be some place where the con- 

 ditions changed, some junction which we ought to explore. 

 Somewhere abreast of us now should be one of those deeper in- 

 dentations in the ice-mass, where we might reasonably suppose 

 the change took place, and it occurred to me that we might 

 glean further knowledge by re-examining this part. As we 

 had been driven some way to the northward, it was several 

 hours before we were sufficiently close to recognise the deep 

 bight for which I had determined to make, and it was well on 

 in the afternoon before we turned into it and had the ice on 

 each side of us. We found that the inlet had several branches ; 

 selecting the most southerly, we turned sharply into it and 

 entered a creek facing towards the east, inside which we were 



