It was a treat to get into the tent; the day had been a bitter one.  During the night the wind went round to the north, and all the snow that had been blown northward by the wind of the previous day had nothing to do but to come back again; the road was free.  And it made the utmost use of its opportunity; nothing could be seen for driving snow when we turned out next morning.  We could only stay where we were, and console ourselves with the thought that it made no difference, as it had been decided that we were to remain here two days.  But staying in a tent all day is never very amusing, especially when one is compelled to keep to one’s sleeping-bag the whole time.  You soon get tired of talking, and you can’t write all day long, either.  Eating is a good way of passing the time, if you can afford it, and so is reading, if you have anything to read; but as the menu is limited, and the library as a rule somewhat deficient on a sledging trip, these two expedients fall to the ground.  There is, however, one form of entertainment that may be indulged in under these circumstances without scruple, and that is a good nap.  Happy the man who can sleep the clock round on days like these; but that is a gift that is not vouchsafed to all, and those who have it will not own up to it.  I have heard men snore till I was really afraid they would choke, but as for acknowledging that they had been asleep —­ never!  Some of them even have the coolness to assert that they suffer from sleeplessness, but it was not so bad as that with any of us.

In the course of the day the wind dropped, and we went out to do some work.  We transferred the old depot to the new one.  We now had here three complete sledge-loads, for which there would be little use, and which, therefore, were left behind.  The eastern party availed themselves of part of these supplies on their journey, but not much.  This depot is a fairly large one, and might come in useful if anyone should think of exploring the region from King Edward Land southward.  As things were, we had no need of it.  At the same time the sledges were packed, and when evening came everything was ready for our departure.  There had really been no hurry about this, as we were going to stay here on the following day as well; but one soon learns in these regions that it is best to take advantage of good weather when you have it —­ you never know how long it will last.  There was, however, nothing to be said about the day that followed; we could doze and doze as much as we liked.  The work went on regularly, nevertheless.  The dogs gnawed and gnawed, storing up strength with every hour that went by.

We will now take a trip out to our loaded sledges, and see what they contain.  Hanssen’s stands first, bow to the south; behind it come Wisting’s, Bjaaland’s and Hassel’s.  They all look pretty much alike, and as regards provisions their loads are precisely similar.

Case No. 1 contains about 5,300 biscuits, and weighs 111 pounds.