AURORA’S MEN.

Hokitika Guardian, 15 February 1917, Page 3

AURORA’S MEN.

Incidents in the DAily Life-

“ Hut Point Mixture.”

To H. E. Wild is ascribed the honour of inv6ntii g and naming a composition which did duty fo members of fcbe Aurora’s pirty in the Antarctic in ken of tobacco during m >.ny weaty mouths. When the very limited supply of weed in the hut was exhausted, various substitutes were tried with varying degrees of satisfaction to the consumer, flea was attempted, and no was coffee, and then the inventive genius of Wi d asserted itself. With exquisite care he blended some fresh tea, coffee, sawdust, and a few species of herb?, and called hia creation “ Hut Point Mixture.” This survived the gamut of criticism, aud became the standard “tobacco.” It ia said that Joyca tried unions, but was speed-ly made to atop ; while another member of the party met with very little success in his attempt to inhale the “smoke from dried ehredded potatoes ! Although naturally interested to see some of the famous “ Hut Point Mixture,” a representative of the Wellington Post ” lesolutely declined a cordial invitation to “ havo a pipeful—it is real good.”

“A THREE WEEKS’ DEBATE. ’’ Shrouded in thick, black, puugent smoke from the blubber stove in tha hut during the winter nights, members of the putty engaged in many spirited argunienls. “We had some good debates 1 ” said one of the participants, “and frequently we used to refer to the Eaoyoiopedia to settle some point on which the various opinions could not be reconciled. lam afraid, however, that after a while we got into such a way that we refused to believe the Encyclopedia, preferring our own views.” Many were tho enbjucta spoken of, and the rules of debate were not always adhered to, One argument on “Money and Exchange” ia,?. od for three week?.

CLOTHING PROBLEMS “Some of us are going to sp md a 1 day to-morrow buying thing?,” said ODB of the explorers ou Friday evening. “Look at me,” he added. * 1 have not got much or, and what 1 have got is all borrowed.” On Saturday some of the members of the party bore sit-ins of hiving been to the outfitter's. While in the Antarctic there was at one time a rather grave shortage of clothing owing to supplies having beontaken away whea the ship left. Ia the hut left by Captain Scott’s expedition, however,

some canvas aud sleeping begs were found, gnd here again the handiness of Wild and Joyce resulted in tho production of some useful, if not stylish, articles of apparel,

THE VAGARIES OE OSCAR. Oocar, one of the few of the cogs which have been brought back in the Aurora, has had a strenuous time, and he shows it. “He wan a fearful wreck whea we started,” said one member of the party,” and we did not think he was going to do any good, but be pulled through well aud finished strong.” A dog of a somewhat surly disposition, O car was inclined fo be somewhat qnarrrelsorae, and ou o&o occasion at Hut Point, after a fieht in which he got the worst of it, Oscar covered with bio d, disappeared. He> was away in a blizzard for three days, and was given up for lost, but turned up again “as fresh as paint.” All the men speak feeiing'y of the dogs and the great work done by the survivors of the pack. There seems to be a strong bo r d between the explorers aad their four-footed companions. The loss of sixteen dogs on sledging work in 1915 was very keenly felt. It ia said that the dogs require some considerable time to get acclimatised aud “hard,” and that perhaps they were not quite ready at the time for the laborious task allotted to them.

BEAL MEAT AND PENGUINS. “Privations? Well, you could hardly say we suffered any great privation at all,” explained one member, in reply to a query. “We certainly suffered inconvenience, but we had plenty to eat. It may be because you have to, but it is true that you get to like seal meat. Then we had tho penquins, and we ate both the Adelie and the Emperor.”