A BIRTHDAY PRESENT 



boiled up. The distance to-day was 12 miles, with a 

 light wind. 



February 14. — A good surface to-day, but no wind. 

 The pulling was hard, and the temperature plus 10° 

 to plus 18° Fahr. We did 11% miles. We are still 

 weak, but better, the horse-blood helps. Burst lips are 

 our greatest trouble. 



February 15. — My birthday to-day. I was given a 

 present of a cigarette made out of pipe tobacco and 

 some coarse paper we had with us. It was delicious. 

 A hard pull to-day, and my head is very bad again. 

 The distance was 12% miles, with a fairly good 

 surface and fine weather. We* are picking up our 

 mounds with great regularity. The land can be seen 

 faintly through the haze in the distance. We have 

 found undulations even out here, but not very marked, 

 running in the usual direction. Temperature minus 3° 

 Fahr. at noon. 



February 16. — A fair surface to-day, but no wind. 

 The sastrugi are disappearing. We are appallingly 

 hungry. We are down to about half a pannikin of half- 

 cooked horse-meat a meal and four biscuits a day. We 

 covered 13 miles to-day, with the temperature from 

 zero to minus 7° Fahr. There are appearances of wind 

 from the south, long windy streamers of torn stratus. 

 We are so weak now that even to lift our depleted 

 provision bag is an effort. When we break camp in 

 the morning we pull the tent off the poles and take it 

 down before we move the things inside, for the effort of 

 lifting the sleeping-bags, &c, through the doorway is 

 too great. At night when we have come to camp we 

 sometimes have to lift our legs one at a time with both 

 hands in getting into the tent. It seems a severe strain 

 to lift one's feet without aid after we have stiffened 

 from the day's march. Our fingers are extremely 



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