DEPOT AT BUTTER POINT 



appeared to be simply a local piedmont glacier stretching 

 along for some considerable distance between the base 

 of the coast range and the sea ice, past the " Stranded 

 Moraines," until still further south it became confluent 

 with that Mr. H. G. Ferrar has described as the " pin- 

 nacled ice." It was evident that this piedmont ice 

 was firmly attached to the land, as it was separated from 

 the sea ice, by a well-marked tide-crack. With the help 

 of our ice axes we crossed over this crack and got up the 

 little ice cliff on to the glacier ice, and selected there a 

 suitable spot for our depot. 



According to arrangements with Lieutenant Shackle- 

 ton we were to leave a depot flag at Butter Point with 

 a letter giving an account of our doings, and stating 

 approximately by what date we hoped to return there. 

 But the progress of our journey had been so much 

 slower than we had originally anticipated that we 

 decided before reaching Butter Point that it would be 

 imperatively necessary, in order to make the Magnetic 

 Pole in the time available, to lighten the load on our 

 sledges by leaving a portion of our equipment and 

 food. 



During the latter part of this day Mawson and Mackay 

 were busy making a mast and boom for the second 

 sledge, it being our intention to use the tent floorcloth as 

 a sail. Meanwhile I sorted out the material to be left at 

 the depot. 



The following day, Wednesday, October 14, we 

 spent the morning in resorting the loads on our sledges. 

 We depoted two tins of wholemeal plasmon biscuits, 

 each weighing about 27 lb., also Mackay's mountaineer- 

 ing nail boots, and my spare head-gear material and mits. 

 Altogether we hghtened the load by about 70 lb. We 

 sunk the two full tins of biscuits and a tin containing 

 boots, &c., a short distance in the glacier ice to prevent 



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