Well, she's loaded and about ready to go. Best not to look at how low she sits. We carry 430 tons of coal in our holds and another 30 tons in sacks on the upper deck. In the icehouse we have 3 tons of ice, along with 162 carcasses of mutton, three of beef, and boxes of offal. We carry 5 tons of food for the dogs and 45 tons of fodder for the ponies. Oates has rather insisted we bring more, but I wouldn't hear of it.
We will pick up the animals, 19 ponies and 39 dogs, from Quail Island, along with Meares.
I am being called -- tomorrow I shall begin my log in earnest.
