without outcome after all, and
all our doubts about wintering here or in South Victoria Land have been
settled in a startling fashion. About ten o'clock we steamed into a deep
bay in the Barrier which proved to be Shackleton's Bay of Whales, and our
observations in the last expedition [Shackleton's] have been wonderfully
upheld. Our present sights and angles Pennell tells me are almost a
duplicate of those that we got. Every one has always been doubtful about
the Bay of Whales we reported, but now the matter has been set at rest
finally. There is no doubt now that Balloon Bight and the neighbouring
bay marked on the Discovery's chart have become merged into one, and
further, that since that period the resulting bight has broken back
considerably more: indeed it seems to have altered a good deal on its
western border since our visit to it in 1908. Otherwise it is the same,
the same deceptive caves and shadows having from a distance the
appearance of rock exposures, the same pressure-ridged cliffs, the same
undulations behind, the same expanse of sea-ice and even the same crowds
of whales. I hope that before we leave we shall find it possible to
survey the bight, but that depends on the weather. It was satisfactory to
find all our observations coming right and everybody backing up
Shackleton, and I turned in last night feeling quite cheerful and
believing that there would be a really good chance of the Eastern Party
finding a home on the Barrier here--our last chance of surveying King
Edward's Land.

"However, man proposes but God disposes, and I was waked up by Lillie at
one o'clock this morning by the astounding news that there was a ship in
the bay at anchor to the sea-ice. All was confusion on board for a few
minutes, everybody rushing up on deck with cameras and clothes.

"It was no false alarm, there she was within a few yards of us, and what
is more, those of us who had read Nansen's books recognized the Fram.

"She is rigged with fore and aft sails and as she has petrol engines she
has no funnel. Soon afterwards the men forward declared that they sighted
a hut on the Barrier, and the more excited declared that there was a
party coming out to meet us. Campbell, Levick, and myself were therefore
lowered over the side of the ship while she was being made fast, and set
off on ski towards the dark spot we could see. This proved to be only an
abandoned depot and we returned to the ship, where Campbell, who in his
anx