ual exercise.

Held Service as usual.

This afternoon went on ski around the bay and back across. Little
or no wind; sky clear, temperature -25 deg.. It was wonderfully mild
considering the temperature--this sounds paradoxical, but the sensation
of cold does not conform to the thermometer--it is obviously dependent
on the wind and less obviously on the humidity of the air and the
ice crystals floating in it. I cannot very clearly account for this
effect, but as a matter of fact I have certainly felt colder in still
air at -10 deg. than I did to-day when the thermometer was down to -25 deg.,
other conditions apparently equal.

The amazing circumstance is that by no means can we measure the
humidity, or indeed the precipitation or evaporation. I have just
been discussing with Simpson the insuperable difficulties that stand
in the way of experiment in this direction, since cold air can only
hold the smallest quantities of moisture, and saturation covers an
extremely small range of temperature.

_Monday, May_ 29.--Another beautiful calm day. Went out both before and
after the mid-day meal. This morning with Wilson and Bowers towards
the thermometer off Inaccessible Island. On the way my companionable
dog was heard barking and dimly seen--we went towards him and found
that he was worrying a young sea leopard. This is the second found in
the Strait this season. We had to secure it as a specimen, but it was
sad to have to kill. The long lithe body of this seal makes it almost
beautiful in comparison with our stout, bloated Weddells. This poor
beast turned swiftly from side to side as we strove to stun it with
a blow on the nose. As it turned it gaped its jaws wide, but oddly
enough not a sound came forth, not even a hiss.

After lunch a sledge was taken out to secure the prize, which had
been photographed by flashlight.

Ponting has been making great advances in flashlight work, and has
opened up quite a new field in which artistic results can be obtained
in the winter.

Lecture--Japan. To-night Ponting gave us a charming lecture on
Japan with wonderful illustrations of his own. He is happiest in his
descriptions of the artistic side of the people, with which he is
in fullest sympathy. So he took us to see the flower pageants. The
joyful festivals of the cherry blossom, the wistaria, the iris and
chrysanthemum, the sombre colours of the beech blossom and the paths
about the lotus gardens, where mankind meditated in so