The aurora australis was seen for the first time on the evening of March 28.  It was composed of shafts and bands, and extended from the south-west to the north-east through the zenith.  The light was pale green and red.  We see many fine sunsets here, unique in the splendour of their colour.  No doubt the surroundings in this fairyland of blue and white do much to increase their beauty.

The departure of the last depot journey was fixed for Friday, March 31.  A few days before, the seal-hunting party went out on the ice and shot six seals for the depot.  They were cleaned and all superfluous parts removed, so that they should not be too heavy.  The weight of these six seals was then estimated at about 2,400 pounds.

On March 31, at 10 a.m., the last depot party started.  It consisted of seven men, six sledges, and thirty-six dogs.  I did not go myself this time.  They had the most beautiful weather to begin their journey —­ dead calm and brilliantly clear.  At seven o’clock that morning, when I came out of the hut, I saw a sight so beautiful that I shall never forget it.  The whole surroundings of the station lay in deep, dark shadow, in lee of the ridge to the east.  But the sun’s rays reached over the Barrier farther to the north, and there the Barrier lay golden red, bathed in the morning sun.  It glittered and shone, red and gold, against the jagged row of mighty masses of ice that bounds our Barrier on the north.  A spirit of peace breathed over all.  But from Framheim the smoke ascended quietly into the air, and proclaimed that the spell of thousands of years was broken.

The sledges were heavily loaded when they went southward.  I saw them slowly disappear over the ridge by the starting-place.  It was a quiet time that followed after all the work and hurry of preparation.  Not that we two who stayed at home sat still doing nothing.  We made good use of the time.  The first thing to be done was to put our meteorological station in order.  On April 1 all the instruments were in use.  In the kitchen were hung our two mercury barometers, four aneroids, barograph, thermograph, and one thermometer.  They were placed in a well-protected corner, farthest from the stove.  We had no house as yet for our outside instruments, but the sub-director went to work to prepare one as quickly as possible, and so nimble were his hands that when the depot party returned there was the finest instrument-screen standing ready on the hill, painted white so that it shone a long way off:  The wind-vane was a work of art, constructed by our able engineer, Sundbeck.  No factory could have supplied a more handsome or tasteful one.  In the instrument-screen we had a thermograph, hygrometer, and thermometers.  Observations were made at 8 a.m., 2 p.m., and 8 p.m.  When I was at home I took them, and when I was away it was Lindstrom’s work.