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AUTHOR'S PREFACE
AUTHOR'S PREFACE
The object of this book is to present a connected narrative of the Expedition from a popular and general point of view. The field of work is a very extensive one, and I feel that this account provides a record inadequate to our endeavours. However, I am comforted by the fact that the lasting reputation of the Expedition is founded upon the scientific volumes which will appear in due course. Allusion to the history of Antarctic exploration has been reduced to a minimum, as the subject has been ab
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FOREWORD
FOREWORD
The aim of geographical exploration has, in these days, interfused with the passion for truth. If now the ultimate bounds of knowledge have broadened to the infinite, the spirit of the man of science has quickened to a deeper fervour. Amid the finished ingenuities of the laboratory he has knitted a spiritual entente with the moral philosopher, viewing: Science and exploration have never been at variance; rather, the desire for the pure elements of natural revelation lay at the source of that unq
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INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION
One of the oft-repeated questions for which I usually had a ready answer, at the conclusion of Sir Ernest Shackleton's Expedition (1907-09) was, "Would you like to go to the Antarctic again?" In the first flush of the welcome home and for many months, during which the keen edge of pleasure under civilized conditions had not entirely worn away, I was inclined to reply with a somewhat emphatic negative. But, once more a man in the world of men, lulled in the easy repose of routine, and performing
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Sir Douglas Mawson (Photogravure)
Sir Douglas Mawson (Photogravure)
In Memoriam cross at Cape Denison (Photogravure)...
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Virgin solitudes
Virgin solitudes
A weather-worn snow-berg A grottoed iceberg The Mertz Glacier Tongue, at a point 50 miles from the land The Grey Rock Hills at Cape Denison Winter quarters, Adelie Land The Alpine-glow "Antarctica is a world of colour, brilliant and intensely pure..." Sledging in Adelie Land [Volume II] Islets fringing the mainland: view looking west from Stillwell Island Rafts of floe-ice Before sunrise: camped near the Hippo Nunatak Avalanche rocks Delay Point The great "Bergschrund" of the Denman Glacier Tuss
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CHAPTER I THE PROBLEM AND PREPARATIONS
CHAPTER I THE PROBLEM AND PREPARATIONS
Notwithstanding the fact that it has been repeatedly stated in the public press that the Australasian Antarctic expedition had no intention of making the South Geographical Pole its objective, it is evident that our aims were not properly realized by a large section of the British public, considering that many references have appeared in print attributing that purpose to the undertaking. With three other Antarctic expeditions already in the field, it appeared to many, therefore, that the venture
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CHAPTER II THE LAST DAYS AT HOBART AND THE VOYAGE TO MACQUARIE ISLAND
CHAPTER II THE LAST DAYS AT HOBART AND THE VOYAGE TO MACQUARIE ISLAND
It will be convenient to pick up the thread of our story upon the point of the arrival of the 'Aurora' in Hobart, after her long voyage from London during the latter part of the year 1911. Captain Davis had written from Cape Town stating that he expected to reach Hobart on November 4. In company with Mr. C. C. Eitel, secretary of the Expedition, I proceeded to Hobart, arriving on November 2. Early in the morning of November 4 the Harbour Board received news that a wooden vessel, barquentine-rigg
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CHAPTER III FROM MACQUARIE ISLAND TO ADELIE LAND
CHAPTER III FROM MACQUARIE ISLAND TO ADELIE LAND
The morning following our farewell to Ainsworth and party at the north end of the island found us steaming down the west coast, southward bound. Our supply of fresh water was scanty, and the only resource was to touch at Caroline Cove. As a matter of fact, there were several suitable localities on the east coast, but the strong easterly weather then prevailing made a landing impossible. On the ship nearing the south end, the wind subsided. She then crept into the lee of the cliffs, a boat was dr
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CHAPTER IV NEW LANDS
CHAPTER IV NEW LANDS
Leaving the land party under my charge at Commonwealth Bay on the evening of January 19, the 'Aurora' set her course to round a headland visible on the north-western horizon. At midnight the ship came abreast of this point and continued steaming west, keeping within a distance of five miles of the coast. A break in the icy monotony came with a short tract of islets fronting a background of dark rocky coastline similar to that at Cape Denison but more extensive. Some six miles east of D'Urville's
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CHAPTER V FIRST DAYS IN ADELIE LAND
CHAPTER V FIRST DAYS IN ADELIE LAND
The overcrowded whale-boat disgorged its cargo at 10 P.M. on the ice-quay at Cape Denison. The only shelter was a cluster of four tents and the Benzine Hut, so the first consideration was the erection of a commodious living-hut. While the majority retired to rest to be ready for a fresh burst of work on the morrow, a few of us discussed the preliminary details, and struck the first blows in the laying of the foundations. A site for the living-hut was finally approved. This was a nearly flat piec
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CHAPTER VI AUTUMN PROSPECTS
CHAPTER VI AUTUMN PROSPECTS
As far as we could see, the inland ice was an unbroken plateau with no natural landmarks. From the hinterland in a vast solid stream the ice flowed, with heavily crevassed downfalls near the coast. Traversing this from north to south was a narrow belt, reasonably free from pitfalls, running as a spur down to the sea. To reach the Hut in safety it would be necessary for sledging parties returning from the interior to descend by this highway. The problem was to locate the path. Determinations of l
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CHAPTER VII THE BLIZZARD
CHAPTER VII THE BLIZZARD
The equinox arrived, and the only indication of settled weather was a more marked regularity in the winds. Nothing like it had been reported from any part of the world. Any trace of elation we may have felt at this meteorological discovery could not compensate for the ever-present discomforts of life. Day after day the wind fluctuated between a gale and a hurricane. Overcast skies of heavy nimbus cloud were the rule and the air was continually charged with drifting snow. Lulls of a singular natu
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CHAPTER VIII DOMESTIC LIFE
CHAPTER VIII DOMESTIC LIFE
Our hearth and home was the living Hut and its focus was the stove. Kitchen and stove were indissolubly linked, and beyond their pale was a wilderness of hanging clothes, boots, finnesko, mitts and what not, bounded by tiers of bunks and blankets, more hanging clothes and dim photographs between the frost-rimed cracks of the wooden walls. One might see as much in the first flicker of the acetylene through a maze of hurrying figures, but as his eyes grew accustomed to the light, the plot would th
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CHAPTER IX MIDWINTER AND ITS WORK;
CHAPTER IX MIDWINTER AND ITS WORK;
With the advent of the fateful Ides of March, winter ii had practically set in, and work outside had a chequered career. When a few calm hours intervened between two blizzards a general rush was made to continue some long-standing job. Often all that could be done was to clear the field for action, that is, dig away large accumulations of snow. Then the furies would break loose again, and once more we would play the waiting game, meanwhile concerning ourselves with more sedentary occupations. Th
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CHAPTER X THE PREPARATION OF SLEDGING EQUIPMENT
CHAPTER X THE PREPARATION OF SLEDGING EQUIPMENT
The world of fashion insists on its minute vagaries in dress not always with an eye to utility and an explorer in the polar regions is a very fastidious person, expending a vast amount of care on his attire, but with the sole idea of comfort, warmth, and usefulness. The clothes he wears are many and often cumbersome, but they have gradually been perfected to meet the demands of the local weather conditions. After a sojourn in the ice-lands, he returns to civilization with a new concept of the va
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Section through a Nansen Sledging Cooker mounted on the primus
Section through a Nansen Sledging Cooker mounted on the primus
The subject of food is one which requires peculiar consideration and study. It is assumed that a polar expedition must carry all its food-stuffs in that variety and quantity which may approximately satisfy normal demands. Fortunately, the advance of science has been such that necessaries like vegetables, fruit, meats and milk are now preserved so that the chances of bacterial contamination are reduced to a minimum. A cold climate is an additional security towards the same end. Speaking generally
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CHAPTER XI SPRING EXPLOITS
CHAPTER XI SPRING EXPLOITS
If the "winter calms" were a delusion, there were at least several beautifully clear, moderately calm days in June. The expectation of colder weather had been realized, and by the end of the month it was a perceptible fact that the sun had definitely turned, describing a longer arc when skimming the distant fleets of bergs along the northern horizon. Thus on June 28 the refracted image of the sun rose into visibility about eleven o'clock, heralded by a vivid green sky and damask cloud and by one
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CHAPTER XII ACROSS KING GEORGE V LAND
CHAPTER XII ACROSS KING GEORGE V LAND
October had passed without offering any opportunities for sledging, and we resolved that in defiance of all but the worst weather a start would be made in November. The 'Aurora' was due to arrive early in January 1913 and the time at our disposal for exploration was slipping away rapidly. The investigation by sledging journeys of the coastline to the eastward was regarded as of prime importance, for our experience in the 'Aurora' when in those longitudes during the previous year was such as to g
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CHAPTER XIII TOIL AND TRIBULATION
CHAPTER XIII TOIL AND TRIBULATION
The homeward track! A few days ago—only few hours ago-our hearts had beat hopefully at the prospect and there was no hint of this, the overwhelming tragedy. Our fellow, comrade, chum, in a woeful instant, buried in the bowels of the awful glacier. We could not think of it; we strove to forget it in the necessity of work, but we knew that the truth would assuredly enter our souls in the lonely days to come. It was to be a fight with Death and the great Providence would decide the issue. On the ou
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Dr. R. BAGE
Dr. R. BAGE
On the afternoon of November 10, at Aladdin's Cave, after a convivial hoosh, Webb, Hurley and I said good-bye to Dr. Mawson's party and made off south for the eleven and three-quarter mile cave where our Supporting Party, Murphy, Hunter and Laseron, were waiting for us. At 7 P.M. we started almost at a run over the smooth ice, to the accompaniment of hearty cheers from Dr. Mawson, Ninnis, and Mertz; two of whom we were never to see again. Half a mile of this easy going, and we were on snow for t
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CHAPTER XV EASTWARD OVER THE SEA-ICE
CHAPTER XV EASTWARD OVER THE SEA-ICE
The Eastern Coastal party consisted of Dr. A. L. McLean, P. E. Correll and myself. For weeks all preparations had been made; the decking put on the sledge, runners polished, cooker- and instrument-boxes attached, mast erected, spar and sail rigged, instruments and clothing collected, tent strengthened—all the impedimenta of a sledge journey arranged and rearranged, and still the blizzard raged on. Would we never get away? November arrived, and still the wind kept up daily averages of over fifty
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CHAPTER XVI HORN BLUFF AND PENGUIN POINT
CHAPTER XVI HORN BLUFF AND PENGUIN POINT
As we neared Horn Bluff, on the first stage of our homeward march, the upper layers of snow were observed to disappear, and the underlying ice became thinner; in corrugated sapphire plains with blue reaches of sparkling water. Cracks bridged with flimsy snow continually let one through into the water. McLean and I both soaked our feet and once I was immersed to the thighs, having to stop and put on dry socks and finnesko. It was a chilly process allowing the trousers to dry on me. The mountain,
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CHAPTER XVII WITH STILLWELL'S AND BICKERTON'S PARTIES
CHAPTER XVII WITH STILLWELL'S AND BICKERTON'S PARTIES
Leaving Madigan's party on November 19, when forty-six miles from the Hut, Stillwell, Hodgeman and Close of the Near-Eastern Party diverged towards a dome-shaped mountain—Mount Hunt. A broad valley lay between their position on the falling plateau and this eminence to the north-east. Looking across, one would think that the depression was slight, but the party found by aneroid that their descent was one thousand five hundred feet into a gully filled with soft, deep snow. After skimming the polis
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CHAPTER XVIII THE SHIP'S STORY
CHAPTER XVIII THE SHIP'S STORY
Dr. Mawson's plans, as laid before the Royal Geographical Society in 1911, provided for an extensive oceanographical campaign in the immense stretch of ocean to the southward of Australia. Very little was known of the sea-floor in this area, there being but a few odd soundings only, beyond a moderate distance from the Australian coast. Even the great Challenger expedition had scarcely touched upon it; and so our Expedition had a splendid field for investigation. The first discovery made in this
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CHAPTER XIX THE WESTERN BASE—ESTABLISHMENT AND EARLY ADVENTURES
CHAPTER XIX THE WESTERN BASE—ESTABLISHMENT AND EARLY ADVENTURES
At 7 A.M. on February 21, 1912, the 'Aurora' steamed away to the north leaving us on the Shackleton Ice-Shelf, while cheers and hearty good wishes were exchanged with the ship's company. On the sea-ice, that day, there stood with me my comrades—the Western Party; G. Dovers, C. T. Harrisson, C. A. Hoadley, S. E. Jones, A. L. Kennedy, M. H. Moyes and A. D. Watson. We proceeded to the top of the cliff, where the remainder of the stores and gear were hauled up. Tents were then erected and the work o
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CHAPTER XX THE WESTERN BASE—WINTER AND SPRING
CHAPTER XX THE WESTERN BASE—WINTER AND SPRING
On Easter Sunday, April 7, 1912, a furious blizzard kept us close prisoners. To meet the occasion, Dovers prepared a special dinner, the principal item being roast mutton, from one of the six carcases landed with the stores. Divine service was held in the forenoon. The blizzard raged with such force all Sunday and Monday that I dared not let any one go out to feed the dogs, although we found, later, that a fast of three days did not hurt them at all. I now thought it time to establish a winter r
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CHAPTER XXI THE WESTERN BASE—BLOCKED ON THE SHELF-ICE
CHAPTER XXI THE WESTERN BASE—BLOCKED ON THE SHELF-ICE
We started away on the main eastern journey with a spurt of eleven miles on a calm and cloudless day, intending to follow our former track over the shelf-ice to the Hippo Nunatak. The surface varied; soft patches putting a steady brake on the ardour of the first, fresh hours of marching. In the afternoon, it was only necessary to wear a shirt, singlet, heavy pyjama trousers, finnesko and socks, and even then one perspired freely. The temperature stood at 17 degrees F. The dogs pulled their load
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CHAPTER XXII THE WESTERN BASE—LINKING UP WITH KAISER WILHELM II LAND
CHAPTER XXII THE WESTERN BASE—LINKING UP WITH KAISER WILHELM II LAND
On our return from the Western Depot journey towards the end of October 1912, we found preparations completed for the long western trip, towards Gaussberg in Kaiser Wilhelm II Land, which was discovered by the German Antarctic Expedition of 1902. The departure was delayed for several days, but came at last on November 7, Moyes bidding us adieu and wishing us good luck. The party consisted of Dovers (surveyor), Hoadley (geologist), and myself (surgeon). We were hauling one sledge with rations for
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CHAPTER XXIII A SECOND WINTER
CHAPTER XXIII A SECOND WINTER
During the first busy year in Adelie Land, when the Hut was full of life and work, there were few moments for reflection. Yet, over the speculative pipe at home after a successful day's labour on the wireless masts, or out on the turbulent plateau when the hour of hoosh brought the strenuous day to a close, more than one man was heard to say, "One year in this country is enough for me." Still, in the early days, no one could predict what would happen, and therefore a change in the perverse clima
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CHAPTER XXIV NEARING THE END
CHAPTER XXIV NEARING THE END
It is wonderful how quickly the weeks seemed to pass. Situated as we were, Time became quite an object of study to us and its imperceptible drift was almost a reality, considering that each day was another step towards liberty—freedom from the tyranny of the wind. In a sense, the endless surge of the blizzard was a slow form of torture, and the subtle effect it had on the mind was measurable in the delight with which one greeted a calm, fine morning, or noted some insignificant fact which bespok
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CHAPTER XXV LIFE ON MACQUARIE ISLAND
CHAPTER XXV LIFE ON MACQUARIE ISLAND
Left on an island in mid-ocean! It suggests the romances of youthful days—Crusoe, Sindbad and all their glorious company. Still, when this narrative is completed, imagination will be seen to have played a small part. In fact, it is a plain tale of our experiences, descriptive of a place where we spent nearly two years and of the work accomplished during our stay. The island was discovered in 1810 by Captain Hasselborough of the ship 'Perseverance', which had been dispatched by Campbell and Sons,
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CHAPTER XXVI A LAND OF STORM AND MIST
CHAPTER XXVI A LAND OF STORM AND MIST
A Heavy north-west gale was experienced on April 12, the wind attaining a force of over fifty miles an hour. As usual, a tremendous sea worked up very quickly, and sheets of spray shredded across the isthmus. About 2 P.M. the wind shifted to west and later to south-west; these changes being accompanied by fierce hail and squalls of snow. During the night the wind moderated, heavy snow fell and, when morning dawned, all the pools were frozen over and the island was draped in white. It was the hea
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CHAPTER XXVII THROUGH ANOTHER YEAR
CHAPTER XXVII THROUGH ANOTHER YEAR
We had now thrown a year behind and the work we set out to accomplish was almost finished; so it was with pleasurable feelings that we took up the burden of completion, looking forward to the arrival of April 1913 which should bring us final relief and the prospects of civilisation. I shall deal with the first three months of the year as one period, since almost all the field-work, except photography, had been done, and, after the return of Blake and Hamilton from Lusitania Bay on January 8, our
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CHAPTER XXVIII THE HOMEWARD CRUISE
CHAPTER XXVIII THE HOMEWARD CRUISE
As we sat in the wardroom of the 'Aurora' exchanging the news of months long gone by, we heard from Captain Davis the story of his fair-weather trip from Hobart. The ship had left Australian waters on November 19, and, from the outset, the weather was quite ideal. Nothing of note occurred on the run to Macquarie Island, where a party of three men were landed and Ainsworth and his loyal comrades picked up. The former party, sent by the Australian Government, were to maintain wireless communicatio
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