just as the surface was improving--we were forced to camp before the
proper time on this account. On camping we calculated that we were 2500
feet above the Barrier, the surface promising better things, for there
was hard blue ice six inches from the surface, and the snow itself was
fairly close-packed and good for ski.

On December 16 we were out of our sleeping bags at 5 and we were under
way by 7 a.m., marching till noon, when we lunched and took sights and
angles. The surface remained fairly good until 2 p.m., when it took an
unaccountable turn for the worse. We covered 12 miles.

Several of us dropped a leg down crevasses here and there, nothing
alarming. We reached 3000 feet altitude, and the day ended in the most
perfect weather. For the first time since leaving Corner Camp we felt
that our ration was sufficient; we had now commenced the "Summit ration,"
which contained considerable extra fats. Snow-blindness caused trouble
here and there, due principally to our removing our goggles when they
clouded up--due to sweating so much in the high temperature. The goggles,
which Wilson was responsible for, served excellently. Yellow and orange
glasses were popular, but some preferred green. As we progressed and our
eyes had to be used for long periods without glasses for clearing
crevasses, etc., we found that a double glass acted best, and used this
whenever the going was easy and goggles could be used.

The contrast between the goggled and the ungoggled state was
extraordinary--when one lifted one's orange-tinted snow glasses it was to
find a blaze of light that could scarcely be endured. Snow-blindness gave
one much the same sensations as those experienced by standing over a
smoking bonfire keeping eyes open.