SOUTH 
For four days the fine weather continued, with gloriously 
warm, bright sun, but cold when vstandiiig still or in the shade. 
The temperature usually dropped below zero, but every oppor- 
tunity was taken during these fine, sunny days to partially 
dry our sleeping-bags and other gear, which had become sodden 
throiigh our body-heat having thawed the snow which had 
drifted in on to them during the blizzard. The bright sun 
seemed to put new heart into all. 
The next day brought a north-easterly wind with the very 
liigh temperature of 27° Fahr — only 6° below freezing. These 
high temperatures do not always represent the Avarmth which 
might be assumed from the thermometrical readings. They 
usually bring dull, overcast skies, with a raw, muggy, moisture- 
laden wind. The winds from the south, though colder, are 
nearly always coincident with sunny days and clear blue skies." 
The temperature still continued to rise, reaching SS"^ Fahr. 
on November 14. The thaw consequent upon these high 
temperatures was having a disastrous effect upon the surface 
of our camp. " The surface is awful ! — not slushy, but elusive. 
You step out gingerly. All is well for a few paces, then your 
foot suddenly sinks a couple of feet until it comes to a hard 
layer. You wade along in this way step by step, like a mud- 
lark at Portsmouth Hard, hoping gradually to regain the sur- 
face. Soon you do, only to repeat the exasperating perform- 
ance ad lib,, to the accompaniment of all the expletives that 
you can bring to bear on the subject. Wliat actually happens 
is that the warm air melts the surface sufficiently to cause 
drops of water to trickle down slightly, where, on meeting colder 
layers of snow, they freeze again, forming a honeycomb of icy 
nodules instead of the soft, powdery, granular snow that we 
are accustomed to." 
These high temperatures persisted for some days, and when, 
as occasionally happened, the sky was clear and the sun was 
shining it was unbearably hot. Five men who were sent to 
fetch some gear from the vicinity of the ship with a sledge 
marched in nothing but trousers and singlet, and even then 
were very hot ; in fact they were afraid of getting sunstroke, 
so let down flaps from their caps to cover their necks. Their 
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