LOSS OF THE ENDURANCE 
all around us like pistol-shots. Tlie darkness is almost complete, 
and we mess about in the wet with half-frozen hands and try 
to keep the coal from slipping back into the bilges. The men 
on deck pour buckets of boiling water from the galley down 
the pipe as we prod and hammer from below, and at last we 
get the pump clear, cover up the bilges to keep the coal out, 
and rush on deck, very thankful to find ourselves safe again 
in the open air." 
Monday, October 25, dawned cloudy and misty, with a 
minus temperature and a strong south-easterly breeze. All 
hands were pumping at intervals and assisting the carpenter 
with the coffer-dam. The leak was being kept under fairly 
easily, but the outlook was bad. Heavy pressure-ridges were 
forming in all directions, and though the immediate pressure 
upon the ship was not severe, I realized that the respite would 
not be prolonged. The pack within our range of vision was 
being subjected to enormous compression, such as might be 
caused by cyclonic winds, opposing ocean currents, or constriction 
in a chamiel of some description. The pressure-ridges, massive 
and threatening, testified to the overwhelming nature of the 
forces that were at work. Huge blocks of ice, weighing many 
tons, were lifted into the air and tossed aside as other masses 
rose beneath them. We were helpless intruders in a strange 
world, our lives dependent upon the play of grim elementary 
forces that made a mock of our puny efforts. I scarcely dared 
hope now that the Endurance would live, and throughout that 
anxious day I reviewed again the plans made long before for 
the sledging journey that we must make in the event of our 
having to take to the ice. We were ready, as far as forethought 
could make us, for every contingency. Stores, dogs, sledges, 
and equipment were ready to be moved from the ship at a 
moment's notice. 
The following day brought bright clear weather, with a blue 
sky. The sunshine was inspiriting. The roar of pressure could 
be heard all around us. New ridges were rising, and I could 
see as the day wore on that the lines of major disturbance were 
drawing nearer to the ship. The Endurance suffered some 
strains at intervals. Listening below, I could hear the creaking 
73 
