THE POLAR RESCUE EXPEDITION

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2773, 17 May 1916, Page 5

THE POLAR RESCUE EXPEDITION

ANNOUNCEMENT BY FEDERAL . ACTING-PREMIER

LOCAL COMMITTEE SHOULD SEE IT THROUGH

By Telegranli-Pxeas Aesociation-OoDyright

Melbourne, May lii. The Acting : Prinie Minister (Senator Pearce) lias announced in connection with the rolief of Sir Ernest Shacklcton that the Commonwealth Government has cabled the Imperial Government suggesting that the Weddelli Sea expedition should start from South Africa. Dr. M'lntosh-thinks that the relief ox-. pedition should be entrusted to a local coimnitteo in the Commonwealth or. in New Zealand, and should use the Aurora for the expedition. PROPOSAL TO EQUIP THE AURORA. (Rec. May 16, 9.30 p.m.) ' i Melbourne, May 16. The Federal Government has iuiormed tho British and New Zealand authorities that it is prepared to assist in every possible way the Shackleton Relief Expeditions. The New Zealand Government has not yet replied. ' It is isuggested that Sir Douglas Mawson is best able to advise on a scheme. ~ It is proposed to .equip tho Aurora with a crew of five officers and twenty men, provisioned for eighteen months. . NEW ZEALAND'S PART. The Prime Minister (Hi-. Massey) stated last night that he had been ia communication with the Imperial Government regarding the proposed relief expedition. Duriug the last day or two some cablegrams had been rocoived from the Acting-. Prime Minister ot tho' Coriimonwealth,' but like all other official cablegrams they were in code, and they had been sent to the responsible officer to be decoded. He had noi seen any cablegram from Aus- i tralia on the subject of the relief expedition, but for the reason- stated he was not prepared to say that no cablegram had been received.' Cablegrams were, being received in very large numbers, and the decoding of them was no easy task. ■■;. ; SHACKLETON'S PROSPECTS .In accordance with Sir Ernest Shackle'on's plan for the conduct of the expedition, the Endurance set-out : in August, 1914, for Buenos Aires, and was later joined by Sir Ernest himself in October, 1914. The expedition left Buenos Aires for South Georgia in the hope of landing on the Weddell Sea coast or the Antarctic Continent early in December. Sir Ernest's plan was that, while certain scientific members of the staff would carry out researches from tho Weddell Sea base, he himsal'iV'ijiith a party, would push across the''route already partly traversed by himself, to the Ice-Barrier on the Boss Sea,' where he was to be met by a party from Australia in/the Aurora. The -Aurora left Sydney in December, 1914, to take up her station on Ross Island at the edge of the great Ice Barrier to await the arrival of the.leader of the expedition and his party. Meantime, while the Aurora party carried on scientific work, a series or depots was to be laid down across the 'barrier-to the Great Glacier, and for a considerable distance towards the South Pole, for the use of : tho trans-continental party, on the second half of their hazardous journey. Sir Ernest hoped to be able to start on his ■journey of 1700 miles in December, 1914; but in a'message sent from South Georgia in Januarv, 1915,' he announced that the ice/conditions in the Antarctic were too unfavourable to give hope of a start tnat seasou. It may be taken for granted, as Sir Ernest expected to take four months to cross, that he had not reached his goal by the time that the Aurora was driven from her moorings, at Ross Island, which is-about 78deg.-south. The Aurora had thus drifted some 900 miles in the ice before she:-was-released,-some-where in the neighbourhood of the Bal,leny Islands. A Tried Leader. ' Sir Ernest Shaekleton himself ,is absolutely- familiar with Antarctic conditions;, his training under Captain Scott was invaluable to him in organising the expedition of 1907, when ho was able to attain a latitude of SSdeg. 23min. within about 100 geographical miles of the South Pole. Although 'Amundsen and Scott, Sir Ernest's great leader, had reached the South Pole, Sir Ernest believed that much still, remained to be done, and the expedition on which he started in the autumn 'of 1914 was fully equipped for scientific work. ; But Sir Ernest felt bound to infuse the expedition-with a spice of adventure and to outdo even Amundsen by marching right across the continent'from the Weddell Sea to the termination of the great ice barrier in the Ross Sea. The minimum distance of this march was 1700 'etatute miles, the first 800 of which would be of quite a' new route. He hoped in this way to solve the complete continental nature of the Antarctic. Special arrangements wero made to carry out geological work both on the east and the west side of, tho Weddell Sea, while the ship was ;if • possible to trace the continuation of Graham Land southwards; but this was abandoned. Magnetic work v.ras to be carried out continually j the meteorological.conditions were to.be carefully studied; biological work was to be thoroughly earned on, and the distribution of animal and plant life ascertained. Both the 'ship which was. to take him to the Weddell Sea and that coming from Australia, which was to meet him in tho Ross Sea, were to be fully equipped for dredging and sounding. While all branches of science were thus to be most carefully attended to, Sir Ernest declared that first and foremost the crossing of the Polar continent would be the mam object of the expedition. In every respect,with regard to crew and staff, scientific equipment, provisions, clothing, dogs, and other necessaries, the organisation was complete. As has been stated, 1914 was a bad ice year. Sir Ernest without a doubt-did not succeed iu starting his trans-continental journey before the latter part of 1915. There cafi be little doubt that if the expedition have had to remain-at their base for a,whole year they have been doing excellent work. With regard to the party of ten on the Ross Sea side, besides the leader, Liout. Mackintosh, there must be H. Wild, who was in chargo_ of the stores, and who is as familiar with Antarctic conditions as Sir Ernest himself, while Joyce, another member of the party, who was in charge of the dogs and sledges, has also had Antarctic experience, as also has Lieut. Mackintosh. The misfortune which has overtaken the Ross Sea party, from which much was hoped, and from which much may still result, 19 to be deplored, but bo-expedition could be better prepared to cope with the trying conditions which must be faced during another winter In the Antarctic. The Aurora. Built in Dundee, the Aurora has a carrying capacity of about GOO tons, and was tho ship selected by Sir Douglas Mawson when he undertook the Australasian Antarctic Expedition (1911-14). Previously the Aurora had been engaged in sealing and whaling in tho Arctic. She proved a good boat, and .Sir Douglas Mawson recorded that his party "had every reason' to -congratulate themselves en tho Aurora's sterling sea-going qualities." When chartered by Sir Ernest Bhackleton, the ship was thoroughly overhauled and was fitted, as-'was the Endurance, to burn oil instead of coal. By the tise of oil Sir Ernest hoped greatly to extend tho radius of action of tho ship, so as to be independent of ballast, as when the oil was used up water could be pumped into the tanks and the ship proceed under sail. Tho Aurora was equipped with cages and tanks for bring- . iug homo livo penguins and seals; whioh have never yet boon taken from Antarctic regions. '