degrees F. on the 24th.

At 10 P.M. on April 1 the rope supporting the aerial parted. Sawyer and
Sandell were on duty at the time, but of course suspended operations
immediately. As before, the halyard also carried away and Sandell
henceforth resolved to shackle one end of the aerial to the mast, using
a short length of chain instead of the rope. The wreck of the Clyde was
once more our standby, providing a suitable length of chain and four
shackles. After completing this job, they had very little subsequent
trouble with the aerial.

Hamilton and Sawyer caught several three-pound fish on April 2,
and Sandell served them in good style. They were good eating, but,
unfortunately, were very much worm-infested. These parasitical worms
are about an inch and a half long and taper to a point at each end. They
penetrate right through the flesh and are plainly noticeable after the
fish is cooked. One has to dodge the worms as the meal proceeds: either
that or persuade oneself that they do not matter.

The flowing contours of the land in the vicinity of "The Nuggets"
suggested glacial action to Blake, and on the 4th, while making
geological investigations in that locality, he lit upon a well-defined
basal moraine. Needless to say he was very interested in the discovery,
and brought home a number of polished, striated boulders as convincing
evidence of his theory.

It was rather disappointing to find that the vegetables we had planted
were making little progress. They would shoot up at first very strongly,
like the "seed which fell on stony ground," but, as soon as a gale
arose, the tops turned black and shortly afterwards withered away. It
was apparently an effect of the salt spray which, in rough weather,
used to blow across the isthmus. Hamilton planted some willows and other
cuttings, which shared the same fate.

The winter had now arrived in real earnest, and the months which
followed were punctuated by a succession of gales, while we came
to recognize that it was an exceptional day when the hills were not
shrouded in mist. The only thing to do was to brace oneself up for the
ordeal and to put a good foot forward.

CHAPTER XXVI A LAND OF STORM AND MIST

by G. F. Ainsworth

A Heavy north-west gale was experienced on April 12, the wind attaining
a force of over fifty miles an hour.

As usual, a tremendous sea worked up very quickly, and sheets of spray
shredded across the isthmus. About 2 P.M. the wind shifted t