6o 
SCOTT'S LAST EXPEDITION 
[July 
up in his harness out of sight and out of reach from the 
surface. It was a crevasse I had just put my foot in, 
but Bowers went in even as I shouted a warning. We 
were too close to one another in our harness and the 
sledge followed us and bridged the crevasse, I had hold 
of Bowers' harness, while Cherry lowered a bowline on 
the end of the Alpine rope into which Bowers got his foot, 
and then by alternately hauling on one and the other we 
got him up again. After this, for the next few days 
while we were on doubtful ground, I went ahead with 
12 or 15 feet of rope on my trace, and so was able to 
give good warning and to change the course easily if I 
found we were getting on to bad ground. 
[C.-G. gives a fuller account : 
Just over the top Birdie went right down a crevasse, 
which was about wide enough to take him — he went 
down slowly, his head disappearing quite slowly — and he 
went down till his head was four feet below the surface, 
a little of his harness catching up on something. Bill 
went for his harness, I went for the bow of the sledge. 
Bill told me to get the Alpine rope and Birdie directed 
from below what we could do : we could not possibly 
haul him up as he was, for the sides of the crevasse were 
soft and he could not help himself. I put a bowline on 
the Alpine rope, and lying down over him gave him the 
loop, which he got under his leg. We then pulled him 
up inch by inch : first by drawing up his leg he could 
give one some slack, then raising himself on his leg he 
could give Bill some slack on the harness, and so we 
gradually got him up. It was a near go for Birdie : the 
