THE HEART OF THE ANTARCTIC 



the pot boiling for a few minutes after the tea had 

 been put in. He pointed out that at our present 

 altitude water boiled at just over 196° Fahr., a tempera- 

 ture which he maintained was insufficient to extract 

 the proper juices and flavour from the tea, unless the 

 boiling was very much prolonged. Mawson, however, 

 averred — on chemical and physical grounds — ^that with 

 the diminished atmospheric pressure certain virtuous 

 constituents of the tea could be extracted at a lower 

 temperature. The discussion was highly scientific and 

 exhilarating, though not very finite. It was agreed 

 as a compromise to allow the boiling to continue for 

 three or four minutes after the water had come to the 

 boil before the tea was poured out. As in our progress 

 coastwards we were continually coming upon more old 

 tea-bags at our old camps, and always collected these 

 and did not throw away any that had been used before 

 we soon had quite an imposing collection of muslin bags 

 with old tea leaves, and with the thorough boiling that 

 they now got there was a strong flavour of muslin 

 superadded to that of old tea. Nevertheless this drink 

 was nectar. 



January 20. — We were still able to-day to follow 

 our sledge tracks, which was a great blessing, the 

 magnetic needle being of so little use to us. We had 

 the wind slightly against us bringing up a httle low 

 drift. Again we made our sixteen-mile run, though 

 with great dififtculty, for the wind had been blowing freshly 

 all day on our starboard bow. 



In view of the good progress that we had made, 

 and after carefully calculating out the provisions left 

 over, Mawson, who was at this time messman, pro- 

 posed that we should return to nearly full rations, 

 as we were becoming much exhausted through insufii- 



186 



