AFTER THE BLIZZARD 163 
he was reduced to a weight little exceeding 400 lbs. 
on his sledge and caved in altogether on the second part 
of the march. The load was reduced to 200 lbs., and finally 
Forde pulled this in, leading the pony. The poor thing 
is a miserable scarecrow and never ought to have been 
brought — it is the same pony that did so badly in the 
ship. To-day it is very fine and bright. We are giving 
a good deal of extra food to the animals, and my hope is 
that they will soon pick up again — but they cannot 
stand more blizzards in their present state. I'm afraid 
we shall not get very far, but at all hazards we must keep 
the greater number of the ponies alive. The dogs arc in fine 
form — the blizzard has only been a pleasant rest for them. 
Memo. — Left No. 7 Camp. 2 bales of fodder. 
Thursday, February 9. — No. 8 Camp. Made good 
11 miles. Good night march; surface excellent, but we 
are carrying very light loads with the exception of one or 
two ponies. Forde's poor * Misery 9 is improving slightly. 
It is very keen on its feed. Its fate is much in doubt. 
Keohane's c Jimmy Pigg ' is less lame than yesterday. 
In fact there is a general buck-up all round. 
It was a coldish march with light head wind and 
temperature 5° or 6° below zero, but it was warm in the 
sun all yesterday and promises to be warm again to-day. 
If such weather would hold there would be nothing to fear 
for the ponies. We have come to the conclusion that the 
principal cause of their discomfort is the comparative 
thinness of their coats. 
We get the well-rcmcmbcred glorious views of the 
Western Mountains, but now very distant. No crevasses 
M 2 
