moment occurred on the 28th. The fowls, in order to
justify our confidence in them and as a return for our constant care,
commenced to lay and, strange to say, all began to lay at the same time.
Ma, who was greatly concerned during the turn of affairs, suffered from
prolonged attacks of cackling.

During the opening days of March, Blake and Hamilton were engaged in
field work down the island. They went as far as "The Brothers," a rocky
promontory about two miles south of Sandy Bay. Wekas were so plentiful
that they lived almost entirely on them. Blake, on returning to the
Shack, had a badly blistered heel which kept him indoors for a few days.
Hamilton, who had secured a goodly number of specimens, had to attend
immediately to their preservation.

There were many rats on the island and we frequently heard them
scuttling about on the ceiling of the Shack and slithering down between
the lining and the wall. Hitherto they had contented themselves by doing
this, but on the night of the 7th several of them flopped one after
another into the hut, awakening the inmates. On getting out to
investigate I found a hole through the lining, about seven feet from the
floor, and two or three were rustling about on the shelves. After much
shifting of boxes and searching behind tins, the intruders were killed.

On March 10 our station held communication with Suva at a distance
of two thousand four hundred miles; a remarkable performance for a
one-and-a-half-kilowatt wireless set.

Hamilton and I set out for West Point and Eagle Cave on the 11th with
the object of examining the flora of the locality and, incidentally, to
shoot ducks which frequent the pools on the "Feather Bed" terrace. The
weather was dull and misty and the walk very uncomfortable. We made our
way across this treacherous tract, often sinking kneedeep. As we neared
the first pool a duck rose and immediately paid the penalty. Although
we saw at least two hundred, only one was shot, owing to the fact that
there is no cover about and the ducks are too easily scared.

Close to Eagle Cave Hamilton gathered some plant specimens and, after
lunching, we set off home. Light, steady rain set in about 3 P.M.
and wet us thoroughly. We travelled back along the coast, finding it
fearfully rough but not so tiring as walking on the terrace.

Heavy snow fell during the night of the 11th. Among other things we
learnt by wireless that Amundsen had returned to Hobart with the news
tha