ON THE RETURN 



makes things very cold, and we ourselves slept badly 

 last night. I did not sleep at all, for both my heels 

 are frost-bitten and have cracked open, and I also 

 have cracks under some of my toes; but we can march 

 all right, and are moving over the ground very fast. 

 We must continue to do so, for we have only about 

 20 lb. of biscuit to last us over 140 miles, and I expect 

 there will be little in the locker by the time we strike 

 our glacier head depot. The surface has been very 

 severe to-day. 



January 14. — A strong following blizzard all day gave 

 us our best day's run of the whole trip, 20 miles 1600 yards 

 in ten hours. We decided to cut down the rations by 

 another biscuit, as we have only six days' biscuit left on 

 short ration, and 120 miles to go before we reach the 

 depot, so we feel very hungry, and with the temperature 

 minus 18° Fahr. to minus 21° Fahr. all day in the wind, 

 one easily gets frost-bitten. 



January 15. — Started in a strong blizzard at 7.30 

 a.m. with a temperature of minus 23° Fahr., and marched 

 steadily till noon, doing miles; then marched from 

 1.30 p.m. till 6 p.m., making a total distance for the day 

 of 20 miles, statute. It has been thick, with a pale 

 sun only shining through, but we are still able 

 to follow our old sledge tracks, though at times 

 they are very faint. Unfortunately, when we halted 

 at 3.30 p.m. for a spell, we found that the sledge meter 

 had disappeared, and discovered that it had broken off 

 short at the brass fitting. This is a serious loss to us, 

 for all our Barrier distances between depots are calcu- 

 lated on it, and although we have another depoted at 

 the foot of the glacier we do not know the 

 slip. We now must judge distance till we get a 

 sight of land. 



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