to say, but at any rate as far as the eye could reach.  Immense pieces of the surface had fallen away and opened up the most horrible yawning gulfs, big enough to swallow many caravans of the size of ours.  From these open holes, ugly wide cracks ran out in all directions; besides which, mounds and haycocks were everywhere to be seen.  Perhaps the most remarkable thing of all was that we had passed over here unharmed.  We went across as light-footedly as possible, and at top speed.  Hanssen went halfway into a crevasse, but luckily got out of it again without difficulty.

The depot in 81deg.  S. was in perfect order; no dog-tracks to be seen there.  Our hopes that the depot in 80deg.  S. would be intact rose considerably.  In 80deg. 45’ S. lay the first dog we had killed —­ Bone.  He was particularly fat, and was immensely appreciated.  The dogs no longer cared very much for pemmican.  On January 21 we passed our last beacon, which stood in 80deg. 23’ S. Glad as we were to leave it behind, I cannot deny that it was with a certain feeling of melancholy that we saw it vanish.  We had grown so fond of our beacons, and whenever we met them we greeted them as old friends.  Many and great were the services these silent watchers did us on our long and lonely way.

On the same day we reached our big depot in 80deg.  S., and now we considered that we were back.  We could see at once that others had been at the depot since we had left it, and we found a message from Lieutenant Prestrud, the leader of the eastern party, saying that he, with Stubberud and Johansen, had passed here on November 12, with two sledges, sixteen dogs, and supplies for thirty days.  Everything thus appeared to be in the best of order.  Immediately on arriving at the depot we let the dogs loose, and they made a dash for the heap of seal’s flesh, which had been attacked neither by birds nor dogs in our absence.  It was not so much for the sake of eating that our dogs made their way to the meat mound, as for the sake of fighting.  Now they really had something to fight about.  They went round the seals’ carcasses a few times, looked askance at the food and at each other, and then flung themselves into the wildest scrimmage.  When this had been duly brought to a conclusion, they went away and lay round their sledges.  The depot in 80deg.  S. is still large, well supplied and well marked, so it is not impossible that it may be found useful later.

The journey from 80deg.  S. to Framheim has been so often described that there is nothing new to say about it.  On January 25, at 4 a.m., we reached our good little house again, with two sledges and eleven dogs; men and animals all hale and hearty.  We stood and waited for each other outside the door in the early morning; our appearance must be made all together.  It was so still and quiet —­ they must be all asleep.  We came in.  Stubberud started up in his bunk and glared at us; no doubt he took us for ghosts.  One after another they woke