THE DEPOT JOURNEY 123 
to our horror that Gran had dropped the top cap of our 
primus at the last camp. Cold food stared us in the face ! 
However, we did manage to melt some snow for a 
cheering drink by cutting a piece of tin as near the shape of 
the cap as possible. Our biscuit was finished owing to the 
ravages of my pony. Before turning in I saw some specks 
to the N. and skipping my theodolite on its tripod, looked 
through the telescope and saw two tents and a number of 
skistuck up. [This was Scott’s man-hauling party together 
with Jimmy Pigg, going out to Corner Camp.] This we 
concluded was either a man-hauling, or man and beast 
party bound for Corner Camp. We overslept and so did 
not get away till the afternoon. It was still very cloudy and 
threatening. I found that I had steered considerably to the 
southward of the right direction in the fog, and it is lucky 
we met with no crevasses off White Island. Safety Camp 
at last appeared, and the last four miles seemed intermin- 
able. We had given the animals their last feed before 
starting, not a particle remained, but they stuck it. The 
surface was very heavy. Once, however, that they had seen 
the camp they never stopped. I suppose they knew they 
were nearly home. We marched in about 9.30 p.m. I said 
‘Thank God’ when I looked at the weather, and the empty 
sledges. The dogs were in camp, also the dome tent [we 
had some tents shaped like a dome in addition to those we 
used for sledging], out of which Uncle Bill (the real ‘Uncle 
Bill Wilson’) and Meares emerged. We soon’ had the 
ponies behind walls and well fed, borrowed their primus for 
ourselves, and had a square meal of pemmican and biscuit 
with fids of seal liver in it. 
(End of Bowers’ Account.) 
Tue Return OF THE Doc Party 
The history of thedog-teams waseventful. Wetravelled 
fast, doing nearly 78 miles in the first three days, by which 
time we were approaching Corner Camp. The dogs were 
thin and hungry and we were pushing them each day just 
so long as they could pull, running ourselves for the most 
part. Scott determined to cut the corner, that is to miss 
