THE HEART OF THE ANTARCTIC 



even the thick landward portions of the snow-drifts are 

 cracked off in large slices, and float seawards, and thus 

 in summer time is formed that almost universal low cliff 

 known as the ice-foot. During heavy weather when the 

 sea is open the waves wash over the lower portions of 

 the ice-foot, with the result that it is being constantly 

 bathed in salt water, which freezes in successive layers on 

 its surface. Thus, when the temperature is low the old 

 masses of snow-drift, of which the upper part of the ice- 

 foot is formed, become cased over with ice much in the 

 same way as snowbergs become encased as the result of 

 their being splashed by sea spray. 



(2) Glacier Ice and Neve. — The glacier ice of the 

 portion of the Antarctic area examined by us either 

 terminates inland in glaciers, some of which are hanging 

 glaciers, and some piedmont glaciers, or ice-slabs, or it 

 comes down to the sea where it is broken off from time 

 to time to form true icebergs, close to the shore-line ; or — 

 and this is a feature emphasised already by Mr. H. T. 

 Ferrar — ^the ice may advance for a considerable distance 

 from the shore-line into the sea, in some cases from 20 to 

 30 miles, probably far more in the case of the Great Ice 

 Barrier, and thus discharge icebergs from its sides as 

 well as its snout. Such glaciers were described by Ferrar 

 as piedmonts-afloat, and we propose to retain this term for 

 them. 



Glaciers. — A good example of this type was to be 

 seen a little over two miles southerly from our winter 

 quarters, just south of Cape Barne. The glacier there, 

 called by us the Cape Barne Glacier, terminates seawards 

 in a clifl* about 100 ft. in height, and some three miles 

 in length. It has its source in the neve fields of the 

 western slope of Mount Erebus. These are fed, not 

 only by new falling snow, but also by large quantities 

 of drift snow swept over, by the south-east bhzzards on to 



292 



