ample evidence
around Winter Quarters. Regarded from the north, the aspect of the
rocks was quite different from that on the southern side. The southern,
windward faces were on the whole smooth and rounded, but there was no
definite polish, because the surface was partly attacked by the chipping
and splitting action of frost. The leeward faces were rougher and
more disintegrated. More remarkable still were the etchings of the
non-homogeneous banded rocks. The harder portions of these were raised
in relief, producing quite an artistic pattern.

In regard to the drift, a point which struck me was the enormous amount
of cold communicated to the sea by billions of tons of low-temperature
snow thrown upon its surface. The effect upon the water, already at
freezing-point, would be to congeal the surface at once. Whilst the wind
continued, however, there was no opportunity for a crust to form,
the uppermost layers being converted into a pea-soup-like film which
streamed away to the north.

A description of the drifts of Adelie Land would not be complete
without mentioning the startling electrical effects which were sometimes
observed. The first record of these was made by McLean, when on
night-watch on March 22. While taking the observations at midnight,
he noticed St. Elmo's fire, a "brush discharge" of electricity, on the
points of the nephoscope. As the weather became colder this curious
phenomenon increased in intensity. At any time in the drift, an
electroscope exposed outside became rapidly charged. A spark gap in a
vacuum, connected with a free end of wire, gave a continuous discharge.
At times, when the effects were strong, the night-watchman would find
the edges and wire stays of the screen outlined in a fashion reminiscent
of a pyrotechnic display or an electric street-advertisement. The
corners of boxes and points of rock glowed with a pale blue light. The
same appeared over points on the clothing, on the mitts and round the
funnel of the helmet. No sensation was transmitted to the body from
these points of fire, at least nothing sufficiently acute to be felt,
with the drift and wind lashing on the body outside. However, the
anemograph several times discharged a continuous stream of sparks into
Madigan's fingers while he was changing the records. Once these sparks
reached half an inch in length, and, as his fingers were bared for the
work, there was no mistaking the feeling.

For regular observations on the subje