THE HEART OF THE ANTARCTIC 



right, Mawson? " he sang out, and from the depth, 

 came up the welcome word, " Yes." Mackay then told 

 me that Mawson was about twenty feet down the 

 crevasse. We decided to try and pull him up with 

 the sledge harness, and hurried back to the sledge, un- 

 toggled the harness, ran back with it to the crevasse, 

 and let one end down to Mawson. We found, however, 

 that our combined strength was insufficient to pull him 

 up, and that there was a risk, too, of the snow lid at 

 the surface falling in on Mawson, if weight was put upon 

 it, unless it was strengthened with some planking. 

 Accordingly, we gave up the attempt to haul Mawson 

 up, and while I remained at the crevasse holding one 

 end of the sledge harness Mackay hurried off for help to 

 the Nimrod, which was now berthing alongside of the 

 south wall of the inlet, about two hundred yards distant. 

 Mackay shouted to those on board, " Mawson has fallen 

 down a crevasse, and we got to the Magnetic Pole." 

 The accident had taken place so suddenly that those on 

 board had not realised in the least what had happened. 

 A clear, firm, cheery voice, that was strange to me, was 

 now heard issuing prompt orders for a rescue party. 

 Almost in less time than it takes to write it, officers and 

 sailors were swarming over the bows of the Nimrod, 

 and dropping on to the ice barrier 'beneath. I called 

 down to Mawson that help was at hand. He said that 

 he was quite comfortable at present; that there was 

 sea water at the bottom of the crevasse, but that he had 

 been able to sustain himself a couple of feet above it 

 on the small ledge that had arrested his fall. Mean- 

 while, the rescue party, headed by the first officer of 

 the Nimrodj, J, K. Davis, had arrived on the scene. 

 The crevasse was bridged with a suitable piece of sawn 

 timber, and Davis, with that spirit of thoroughness 

 which characterises all his work, promptly had himself 



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