Page:Scott's Last Expedition, Volume 2.djvu/247

the primus always had also made a lot of difference, as he handles the stove with more economy than any other of us.

October 1.—We turned out at 5.30 a.m. The morning was still and overcast, but with the sun trying to break through. We got away by 7, but made slow progress, finding the drifts very heavy. My unit consisted of Priestley, Dickason, and myself, with the 12-ft. sledge, and as Levick had the iron runner sledge we had the heavier load. We had to relay most of the day, as Dickason could pull very little and Browning not at all. In fact the latter had to rest constantly, so our progress was slow, and by lunch time we had only made 2½ miles. Our supply of oil would not run to hot lunch, so we had a cold lunch sitting under the lee of the sledge. Before leaving the igloo we had cooked some seal steaks over the blubber fire, but when examined in the light of day these looked so filthy and distasteful, that we discarded them in favour of shreds of raw penguin and seal.

The walking had made both Dickason and Browning much worse, so I had to camp at 6.30 p.m., having only done 5 miles. We are all very tired, but in good spirits at leaving the dirt and squalor of the hut behind. A lovely evening and every appearance of a fine day to-morrow.

October 2.—A fine morning when we turned out at 5.30. The surface was rather better and we did not have to relay, but it was all we could do to move the sledges. About 11 o'clock we got on to a blue ice surface and worked our way through a loose moraine. A bitter wind from the plateau got up about noon, bringing drift