Page:Scott's Last Expedition, Volume 2.djvu/214

Saturday and every other Wednesday, and eight lumps of sugar every Sunday. A bag of raisins we are keeping to allow twenty-five raisins per man on birthdays and red-letter days, and I can see that one of Priestley's difficulties in the future is going to be preventing each man from having a birthday once a month. We have decided to open up neither the chocolate nor the sugar till we are settled in our winter quarters, and, at present, breakfast and supper each consist of a mug of weak seal hoosh and one of weak cocoa, with one biscuit.

To eke out these provisions we have eleven seals and 120 penguins already killed, but to get through the whole winter, even on half rations, we shall require several more seals, and the infrequency of their appearance is causing us all great anxiety.

The wind is incessant, but although strong and very cold, it at least has the merit of being usually free from drift, so that on most days we can work even if under very disadvantageous conditions.

There is plenty of work for all hands, for besides collecting the seals and penguins we have had to carry over our equipment, such as it is, and the provisions from our depôt at Hell's Gate to the site of the snow cave on Inexpressible Island, while three or four of us are usually at work there with pick and shovel.

We have selected a hard drift under the lee of a small hill and have commenced burrowing into it, using two short-handled ice-axes of Priestley's. It is slow work, but after a few hours we had a sheltered place to work in and made better progress.