All hands basked in the sun.

We hung our sleeping-bags to the mast and spread our socks and other gear all over the deck.

Some of the ice had melted off the 'James Caird' in the early morning after the gale began to slacken; and dry patches were appearing in the decking.

Porpoises came blowing round the boat, and Cape pigeons wheeled and swooped within a few feet of us.

These little black-and-white birds have an air of friendliness that is not possessed by the great circling albatross.