THE FROZEN SOUTH.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1007, 23 December 1910, Page 5

THE FROZEN SOUTH.

SIR E. SHACKLETON'S PLAN. By Telegraph—Press Association—CopyrightLondon, December 21. Sir Ernest Shaekleton states, in connection with his proposed Spitzborgen journey and circumnavigation of the Antarctic, that it is his intention to continue lecturing until tho expenses of his last Antarctic expedition have been' cleared—possibly in May, His expedition for the circumnavigation.of tho Antarctic would take two or three years, and would requiro fifty men and two ships, owing to tho great risk to parties left behind. It was proposed to have three landing parties of nine persous each, eight hundred miles apart. Tho expedition would sail from east 1 to west with wind and tide. The civilised base would bo Melbourne. Other bases would bo Cape Adair, Sabrinaland, and 1 Enderbyland, with two year's' stores. Tho vessels would collect the land parties in the following year or tho year after. The expedition would take five months ■ to equip, provided tho money was forth- ' I coming.

THE ORIGINAL SCHEME.

Sir Ernest Shaekleton a few months > ago made thq following statement of his ( . plans with regard to a second Antarctic expedition. Apparently ho is now proposing a more extensive campaign':— "Far from it; but I. have no intention of trying to reach the Polo while Captain Scott is engaged in that project. l?iero can be no question of competition between British explorers in any mere attempt to reach tho Pole. But, apart from this, there is a vast amount of scientific work to be done in the Antarctic in which the more expeditions are engaged the better it will be for science. Captain Scott lias one base at M'Murdo Sound and another on King Edward Vll.'s Land, and tho American base is tho Weddeli Sea; but there is a region 3 extending from Cape Adair to Gaussberg s that has many interesting problems. - This will be the scene of the next expedition I organise. j "I propose to have a base at Cape Adair and one at Adelio Land, aud the > main objects of tho undertaking will be t purely scientific and geographical. In t tho region I have named there is a vast untouched area which presents problems „ of the highest interest to science. At = this stage it would be quite premature to say that I have arranged any details, s for there aro many circumstances to preii vent this. I hope, however, that my next . expedition will leave in 1011, and that it will be on a larger scale than anything yet attempted in tho Antarctic. Two ships will probably .have to be engaged, i "I do not propose to appeal to tlie pubi lie for so as not to interfere with ; Captain Scott's financial plans, either now j" or at a later date. The work I have in view has the approval of the. highest in the scientific world, and already I have n promises of financial support. To a ceri, tain extent I can rely upon the financial n help of, friends, one of the principal being Mr. Gerald Lysight, of tho well-known firm of ironmoulders of Somerset. As I 0 have already said, I have not .yet sotli tied any details, but my companions will 0 include a largo number of my old staff, and Dr. Douglas Mawson, lecturer of , Sydney University and the mineralogist of my last expedition, will be the scienti■e fic director, with complete charge of or ie ganisatiop, staff, etc. This programme the details of which have yet to bo ar It r aU! l eci ' re P rfisl!nts my general desires a< to tho fniiire. for Antarctic work is very L " near my heart." t! =====5