[Illustration:  CAPE EVANS IN WINTER—­E.  A. Wilson, del.]

Vaida was a short-tempered strong animal, who must have about doubled his weight since we came in from One Ton, and he became quite a house-dog this winter, waiting at the door to be patted by men as they went out, and coming in sometimes during the night-watch.  But he did not like to be turned out in the morning, and for my part I did not like the job, for he could prove very nasty.  We allowed a good many of the dogs to be loose this year, and sometimes, when standing quietly upon a rock on the cape, three or four of the dogs passed like shadows in the darkness, busily hunting the ice-foot for seals:  this was the trouble of giving them their freedom, and I regret to say we found many carcasses of seal and Emperor penguins.  There was one new dog, Lion, who accompanied me sometimes to the top of the Ramp to see how the ice lay out in the Sound.  He seemed as interested in it as I was, and while I was using night-glasses would sit and gaze out over the sea which according to its age lay white or black at our feet.  Of course we had a dog called Peary, and another one called Cooke.  Peary was killed on the Barrier because he would not pull.  Cooke, however, was still with us, and seemed to have been ostracized by his fellows, a position which in some lop-sided way he enjoyed.  Loose dogs chased him at sight, and when Cooke appeared, and others were about, a regular steeplechase started.  He also came up the Ramp with me one day:  half-way up he suddenly turned and fled for the hut as hard as he could go:  three other dogs came round the rocks in full chase, and they all gave the impression of thoroughly enjoying themselves.

The question of what ought to be done for the best during the coming sledging season must have been in the minds of all of us.  Which of the two missing parties were we to try and find?  A winter journey to relieve Campbell and his five men was out of the question.  I doubt the possibility of such a journey to Evans Coves with fit men:  to us at any rate it was unthinkable.  Also if we could do the double journey up and down, Campbell could certainly do the single journey down.  Add to this that there was every sign of open water under the Western Mountains, though this did not influence us much when the decision was made.  The problem as it presented itself to us was much as follows: 

Campbell’s Party might have been picked up by the Terra Nova.  Pennell meant to have another try to reach him on his way north, and it was probable that the ship would not be able to communicate again with Cape Evans owing to ice:  on the other hand it was likely that the ship had not been able to relieve him.  It also seemed that he could not have travelled down the coast at this time, owing to the state of the sea-ice.  The danger to him and his men was primarily during the winter:  every day after the winter his danger was lessened.  If we started in the end of October to relieve Campbell, estimating the probable date of arrival of the ship, we judged that we could reach him only five or six weeks before the ship relieved him.  All the same Campbell and his men might be alive, and, having lived through the winter, the arrival of help might make the difference between life and death.