On Wednesday August 7, the ship sailed for New Zealand, and arrived at Lyttelton--from whence the final departure for the south was to be made--on November 23. Mr. Reid reached Australian waters a month ahead of the _Nimrod_, so that he might make necessary arrangements and meet the Manchurian ponies. CHAPTER V WE LEAVE LYTTELTON By strenuous labour we were in readiness to start from Lyttelton on New Year's Day, and we were honoured by the Postmaster-General of the Dominion printing off for us a small issue of special stamps, and making me a postmaster during my stay in the Antarctic. The quarters of the scientific staff on board the _Nimrod_ were certainly small, and as the day of departure approached, Oyster Alley reached a state of congestion awful to contemplate. The ponies--of which we finally took away ten known as "Socks," "Queen," "Grisi," "Chinaman," "Billy," "Zulu," "Doctor," "Sandy," "Nimrod," and "Mac"--were carried on deck and ten stout stalls were built for them. The motor-car was enclosed in a large case and made fast with chains on the after-hatch whence it could be transferred easily to the ice. Our deck load, indeed, was so heavy that the _Nimrod_ was low in the water, and when we left Lyttelton the little ship had only three feet six inches of freeboard. In order to save coal I was anxious to have the _Nimrod_ towed south, and the Government of the Dominion agreed to pay half the cost of the tow, and Sir James Mills, chairman of the Union Steamship Company, offered to pay the other half. The _Koonya_, a steel-built steamer of about 1100 tons, was chartered and placed under the command of Captain F. P. Evans. The wisdom of this selection was proved by subsequent events. Before my departure I placed the conduct of the affairs of the expedition in New Zealand into the hands of Mr. J. J. Kinsey, whose assistance and advice had already been of great service to me. January 1, 1908, arrived at last, a warm and clear morning for our last day in civilisation. Before sunset we were to sever all ties with the outer world, but we all looked forward eagerly to our coming venture, for the glamour of the unknown was with us and the south was calling. All day long the deck of our little vessel was thronged by sight-seers, who showed the greatest interest in everything connected with the ship and her equipment. There were many whose criticisms were frankly pessimistic as to our chances of weathering an Antarctic gale, for the _Nimrod_ was deep in the water, but we, having confidence in the ship, were not disturbed by these criticisms.