high. The cliff-front showed a tide-mark of about 6
ft., proving that it was not afloat. We steamed along the front of
this tremendous glacier for 40 miles and then, at 8.30 a.m., we were
held up by solid pack-ice, which appeared to be held by stranded bergs.
The depth, two cables off the barrier-cliff, was 134 fathoms. No
further advance was possible that day, but the noon observation, which
gave the position as lat. 76° 27? S. long. 28° 51? W., showed that we
had gained 124 miles to the south-west during the preceding twenty-four
hours. The afternoon was not without incident. The bergs in the
neighbourhood were very large, several being over 200 ft. high, and
some of them were firmly aground, showing tidemarks. A barrier-berg
bearing north-west appeared to be about 25 miles long. We pushed the
ship against a small banded berg, from which Wordie secured several
large lumps of biotite granite. While the 'Endurance' was being held
slow ahead against the berg a loud crack was heard, and the geologist
had to scramble aboard at once. The bands on this berg were
particularly well defined; they were due to morainic action in the
parent glacier. Later in the day the easterly wind increased to a gale.
Fragments of floe drifted past at about two knots, and the pack to
leeward began to break up fast.
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