240 WORST JOURNEY IN THE WORLD 
another. That was the surface we met on this journey, and 
in soft snow the effect is accentuated. Our feet were sink- 
ing deep at every step. 
And so when we tried to start on June 30 we found we 
could not move both sledges together. There was nothing 
for it but to take one on at a time and come back for the 
other. This has often been done in daylight when the only 
risks run are those of blizzards which may spring up sud- 
denly and obliterate tracks. Now in darkness it was more 
complicated. From II a.m. to 3 P.M. there was enough 
light to see the big holes made by our feet, and we took 
on one sledge, trudged back in our tracks, and brought on 
the second. Bowers used to toggle and untogele our har- 
nesses when we changed sledges. Of course in this relay 
work we covered three miles in distance for every one mile 
forward, and even the single sledges were very hard pull- 
ing. When we lunched the temperature was — 61°. After 
lunch the little light had gone, and we carried a naked 
lighted candle back with us when we went to find our 
second sledge. It was the weirdest kind of procession, 
three frozen men and a little pool of light. Generally we 
steered by Jupiter, and I never see him now without re- 
calling his friendship in those days. 
We were very silent, it was not very easy to talk: but 
sledging is always a silent business. I remember a long dis- 
cussion which began just now about cold snaps—was this 
the normal condition of the Barrier, or was it a cold snap? 
—what constituted a cold snap? The discussion lasted 
about a week. Do things slowly, always slowly, that was 
the burden of Wilson’s leadership: and every now and 
then the question, Shall we go on? and the answer Yes. 
‘] think we are all right as long as our appetites are 
good,” said Bill. Always patient, self-possessed, unruffled, 
he was the only man on earth, as I believe, who could have 
led this journey. 
That day we made 3} miles, and travelled 10 miles 
to do it. The temperature was — 66° when we camped, 
and we were already pretty badly iced up. That was the 
last night I lay (I had written slept) in my big rein- 
