WINTER MONTHS 
places, and in one spot we counted five such sheets, each about 
2| in. thick, imbricated under one another. They look as 
though made of barley-sugar and are very slippery." The 
noon position on the Uth was lat. 76° 64' S., long. 36'' 10' W. 
The land was visible faintly to the south-east, distant about 
36 miles. A few small leads could be seen from the ship, but 
the ice was firm in our neighbourhood. The drift of the 
Endurance was still towards the north-west. 
I had the boilers blown down on the 15th, and the consump- 
tion of 2 cwt. of coal per day to keep the boilers from freezing 
then ceased. The bunkers still contained 52 tons of coal, 
and the daily consumption in the stoves was about 2| cwt. 
There would not be much coal left for steaming purposes in 
the spring, but I anticipated eking out the supply with blubber. 
A moderate gale from the north-east on the 17th brought 
fine, penetrating snow. The weather cleared in the evening, 
and a beautiful crimson sunset held our eyes. At the same 
time the ice-cliffs of the land were thrown up in the sky by 
mirage, with an apparent reflection in open water, though the 
land itself could not be seen definitely. The effect was repeated 
in all exaggerated form on the following day, when the ice- 
cliffs were thrown up above the horizon in double and treble 
parallel lines, some inverted. The mirage was due probably to 
lanes of open water near the land. The water would be about 
30"" warmer than the air and Avould cause warmed strata to 
ascend. A sounding gave 606 fathoms, with a bottom of 
glacial mud. Six days later, on the 24th, the deptli was 419 
fathoms. We were drifting steadily, and the constant move- 
ment, coupled with the appearance of lanes near the land, 
convinced me that we must stay by the ship till she got clear. 
I had considered the possibility of making a landing across the 
ice in the spring, but the hazards of such an undertaking would 
be too great. 
The training of the dogs in sledge teams was making progress. 
The orders used by the drivers were " Mush " (Go on), Gee " 
(Right), " Haw " (Left), and " Whoa " (Stop). These are the 
words that the Canadian drivers long ago adopted, borrowing 
them originally from England. There were many fights at 
41 
