THE AURORA'S DRIFT 
main brace,' says Stenhouse, " and blew three blasts of fare- 
well to the pack with the whistle." 
The Aiirora was not at the end of her troubles, but the 
voyage up to New Zealand need not be described in detail. 
Any attempt to reach McMurdo Sound was now out of the 
question. Stenhouse had a battered, rudderless ship, with 
only a few tons of coal left in the bunkers, and he struggled 
northward in heavy weather against persistent adverse winds 
and head seas. The jury-rudder needed constant nursing, and 
the shortage of coal made it impossible to get the best service 
from the engines. There were times when the ship could make 
no progress and fell about helplessly in a confused swell or lay 
hove to amid mountainous seas. She was short-handed, and 
one or two of the men were creating additional difficulties. But 
Stenhouse displayed throughout fine seamanship and dogged 
perseverance. He accomplished successfully one of the most 
difficult voyages on record, in an ocean area notoriously stormy 
and treacherous. On March 23 he established wireless com- 
munication with BluS Station, New Zealand, and the next day 
was in touch with WelHngton and Hobart. The naval officer 
in New Zealand waters offered assistance, and eventually it 
was arranged that the Otago Harbour Board's tug Plucky 
should meet the Aurora outside Port Chalmers. There were 
still bad days to be endured. The jury-rudder partially carried 
away and had to be unshipped in a heavy sea. Stenhouse 
carried on, and in the early morning of April 2 the Aurora 
picked up the tug and was taken in tow. She reached Port 
Chalmers the following morning, and was welcomed with the 
warm hospitality that New Zealand has always shown towards 
Antarctic explorers. 
333 
