He had not much idle time. The
amount of seal and sea-elephant steak and blubber consumed by our
hungry party was almost incredible. He did not lack assistance--the
neighbourhood of the blubber-stove had attractions for every member of
the party; but he earned everybody's gratitude by his unflagging energy
in preparing meals that to us at least were savoury and satisfying.
Frankly, we needed all the comfort that the hot food could give us.
The icy fingers of the gale searched every cranny of our beach and
pushed relentlessly through our worn garments and tattered tents. The
snow, drifting from the glacier and falling from the skies, swathed us
and our gear and set traps for our stumbling feet. The rising sea beat
against the rocks and shingle and tossed fragments of floe-ice within a
few feet of our boats. Once during the morning the sun shone through
the racing clouds and we had a glimpse of blue sky; but the promise of
fair weather was not redeemed. The consoling feature of the situation
was that our camp was safe. We could endure the discomforts, and I
felt that all hands would be benefited by the opportunity for rest and
recuperation.
CHAPTER IX
THE BOAT JOURNEY
The increasing sea made it necessary for us to drag the boats farther
up the beach. This was a task for all hands, and after much labour we
got the boats into safe positions among the rocks and made fast the
painters to big boulders.
Pages:
248
249
250
251
252
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265
266
267
268
269
270
271
272