rface was found to be
covered with sastrugi of soft snow eighteen inches to two feet in depth.
In crossing a wide crevasse, the sledge became bogged in the soft snow
of a drift which had a deceptive appearance of solidity. It took us
ten minutes to extricate ourselves, and, after this, crevasses were
negotiated at a run.

A violent blizzard raged during the following day--the first of the New
Year 1913. This proved to be a blessing, for it made the surface more
crisp and firm. In the morning the sun was obscured and nothing was
visible but the snow at our feet, so that steering was very difficult.
In the afternoon the sun broke through, a strong westerly wind sprang
up and we moved along at a good pace, covering more than thirteen miles
before camping.

On January 3 the track bordered on the edge of the plateau, the surface
being almost level, rising gently towards the south.

After a violent blizzard of three days' duration, which confined us in
the tent, we continued on the same course for four days, averaging about
eleven miles each day. The surface was good, but a strong south-easter
blew practically all the time and reduced our speed considerably.

At 10 A.M. on January 9, a fog-bank was observed in the east. This
rapidly approached, and in fifteen minutes was quite close. There was
now a splendid display of rings and arcs, caused apparently by minute
ice-crystals which filled the air without obscuring the sun or sky.
First an arc of prismatic colours appeared in the east, and in a few
seconds the sky seemed literally to be covered with other arcs. At first
they seemed to be scattered indiscriminately, but after a short time
several arcs joined and we could discern a symmetrical arrangement. The
sun was surrounded by a ring, the lower portion of which was broken by
an inverted arc; two other arcs were visible on either side. A large
ring appeared encircling the zenith, intersecting the first and passing
through the sun. Two pairs of arcs were also seen, one pair in
each ring. Excepting the arcs and ring about the zenith, which was
grayish-white against the blue sky, the arcs showed prismatic colouring.
The display lasted ten minutes and ended with the disappearance of the
ice-crystals.

[ILLUSTRATION IN TEXT]

The diagram shows the arrangement of the arcs:

S = Sun. Z = Zenith.

At A, B, C, mock suns could be seen.

From our camp on the night of January 10, broken country could be seen
ahead. To the n