SOUTH 
had nine hours' twilight on the 10th, and the northern sky, low 
to the horizon, was tinted with gold for about seven hours. 
Numerous cracks and leads extended in all directions to within 
300 yds. of the ship. Thin wavering black lines close to the 
nortliern horizon were probably distant leads refracted into 
the sky. Sounds of moderate pressure came to our ears occa- 
sionally, but the ship was not involved. At midnight on the 
11th a crack in the lead ahead of the Endurance opened out 
rapidly, and by 2 a.m. was over 200 yds. wide in places vnth 
an area of open water to the south-west. Sounds of pressure 
were heard along this lead, which soon closed to a width of 
about 30 yds. and then froze over. The temperature at that 
time was — 23"^ Fahr. 
The most severe blizzard we had experienced in the Weddell 
Sea swept down upon the Endurance on the evening of the 
13th, and by breakfast-time on the following morning the 
kennels to the windward, or southern side of the ship were buried 
under 5 ft. of drift. I gave orders that no man should venture 
beyond tlie kennels. The ship was invisible at a distance of 
fifty yards, and it was impossible to preserve one's sense of 
direction in the raging wind and sufiocating drift. To walk 
against the gale was out of the question. Face and eyes became 
snowed up witliin two miimtes, and serious frost-bites would 
have been the penalty of perseverance. The dogs stayed in 
their kennels for tlie most part, the old stagers " putting out 
a paw occasionally in order to keep open a breathing-hole. 
By evening the gale had attained a force of 60 or 70 miles an 
hour, and the ship was trembling under the attack. But we 
were snug enough in our quarters aboard until the morning 
of the 14th, when all hands turned out to shovel the snow from 
deck and kennels. The wind was still keen and searching, 
with a temperature of something like - 30° Fahr., and it was 
necessary for us to be on guard against frost-bite. At least 
100 tons of snow were piled against the bows and port side, 
where the Aveight of the drift had forced the floe downward. 
The lead ahead had opened out during the night, cracked the 
pack from north to south and frozen over again, adding 300 yds. 
to the distance between the ship and Khyber Pass." The 
54 
