1902] LOST IN A BLIZZARD 275 



entirely lost their bearings and were reduced to shouting on 

 the poor chance of being heard and rescued. 



'Meanwhile on board the ship we had not the smallest 

 suspicion that anything unusual had taken place, and remained 

 in ignorance until the rescuers and the rescued burst in upon 

 us ; the latter were severely frost-bitten about the face and also 

 in the legs, as they had not been prepared for such a long stay 

 in the open ; and as they had not been provided with wind 

 covering, their garments inside and out were thickly coated with 

 ice and snow. As soon as we had revived them we learnt 

 what little tale they had to tell. 



' On leaving the hut they had started for the ship, steering 

 through the blinding drift as best they could. After walking 

 for some distance they came to the conclusion they must have 

 missed her, and proceeded to grope their way back to the 

 land. When they reached the tide crack they found some 

 difficulty in deciding which way they should go, but finally 

 they reached a spot which they recognised, and, calculating the 

 position of the ship, they again made tracks for her, and again 

 found that they had missed the mark. They then decided to 

 try to search around in circles, and so the time passed whilst 

 they wandered more or less aimlessly about until they became 

 alarmed, and tried to attract attention by shouting. In the 

 nick of time they were rescued within thirty yards of their 

 goal, but without any knowledge of the fact. 



' The hut is certainly not more than 200 yards from the 

 ship, and the ship is not only a comparatively big object, but 

 is surrounded by guide ropes and other objects which if 

 encountered would have informed the wanderers of their 

 position. These officers were neither of them likely to have 

 lost their heads, and both might be trusted to take the most 

 practical course in such a difficulty. In these circumstances 

 the fact that they should have been lost for two hours would 

 have been incredible had it not actually occurred. It is the 

 most convincing lesson on the blinding, bewildering effect 

 of a blizzard that we have had, and shows clearly what care 

 will be necessary with our sledge parties if such weather 



