THE DASH FOR THE POLE

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 268, 3 April 1911, Page 8

THE DASH FOR THE POLE

NORWEGIAN RIVALS. AM I XDSEX'S WORKMANLIKE METHODS. SCIENTISTS HOPEFUL. By Telegraph.—-Press Association. Christchurch, Last Night. The following cable message, describ' ing the .meeting of gome members of the British Antarctic expedition with Captain Amundsen's Norwegian expedition, was forwarded to London from this city last night:— When following the barrier from King Edward VII. Land with a view to landing the eastern party in the vicinity of Balloon Bight, the Terra Nova people found the Fram at the Bay of Whales. They visited th« Fram, and learned that Captains Amundsen and Johansen ana a party of seven men were establishing winter quarters two miles from the edge of the ice. Captain Amundsen returned in the early morning, and invited the English officers to breakfast. AMUNDSEN'S COMFORTABLE QUARTERS. They visited the hut, which had every appearance of comfort. The men were in excellent health and condition, and the stores were being landed and transported to the quarters. Seals were abundant. Captain Amundsen and his officers lunched on the Terra Nova, after which the ship's company visited the Fram. THE NORWEGIAN'S OBJECT. The sole object of Captain Amundsen is to reach the pole, travelling' via Beardmore •Glacier, after which he intends to carry out his original programme of Antarctic exploration. Meantime, the Fram proceeds to Buenos Ayres, returning to the barrier in 1912. DOGS, SLEDGES AND SKIS. Their equipment is 11G Greenland dogs, and sufficient sledges and skis. The dog's work thirteen in a team, there being two teams to each sledge, anil working 011 alternate days. The load is 1001b for each working dog. The party ski alongside the sledges. The men arc clothed in seal furs and wear no wind clothing. The dogs' food is dried fish. THE DISCOVERY HUT. The Terra Nova left a message announcing the meeting with Captain Amundsen at the Discovery hut, which Captain Scott will find 011 his return from thfc depot journey. BIOLOGIST'S WORK. Mr. D. G. Lillie, one of the biologists with the expedition, who returned with tjle Terra Nova, was asked for information regarding his work. Mr. Lillie explained that just at present he was not able to go into details, or to give any results. When the contents of the trawls were got 011 board, there was no time to investigate them. He hoped, however, to be in a position to give some information in a week or two, and added that he had made arrangements with Mr. L, R. Wait (curator of the Ohristehurch museum) for exhibition of his specimens. The cirrator had very kindly placed a shed at his disposal and also a room in tlu museum. Dr. Chilton had also assisted greatly by lending him the necessarybooks. With these opportunities and facilities afforded, Mr. Lillie expects to get to work on the specimens shortly, and 9ie anticipates some good results therefrom, especially bearing on the theory regarding the migration of sea things. AN INTERESTING, ACCOUNT.) Christchurch, Saturday. A more complete and interesting account of the progress of the Antarctic expedition to date was given by Lieut. Pennell. He said when the Terra Nova' left New Zealand it was intended to make for the Campbell Islands and leave meteorological instruments. There the pumps became choked and failed to act, and it was found necessary to extinguish the fires to prevent damage to the boilers. Only the hand pump was left, and that became choked, and the whole staff and crew had to turn to to bale the ship out. Thus watches were formed, and water was lifted out with buckets. The ship was wallowing a good deal in the sea, and was taking in a lot of lee water. She was really overladen, and had it not been for that she would have weathered the gale without difficulty. As it was, however, little damage resulted. The principal loss was that of a quantity of paraffin stored on deck for safety. Five or six tons of the deck cargo of coal had to thrown overboard, and the expedition-also lost two ponies and a dog. A section of the bulwarks was also carried away. The ponies proved somewhat troublesome, for when they fell by reason of the towing of the vessel they made no attempt to get up. The only thing to do was to hit them on the nose to make them kick, and so help themselves involuntarily. The gale passed after a few days and the weather moderated. ENTERING THE PACK ICE. The pack ice was entered at about 05 degrees south, and the pack was of extraordinary interest. The Terra Nova was in the ice for twenty-one days, and her company saw every sort of pack it was possible to see in the Ross Sea. The ship travelled through the ice for about 080 miles altogether. This was aji unusually long distance, but the fact was that the expedition had started too early in the season. The Fram got through the pack in four days later in the season, but tjle Terra Nova had to push through ice which the Fram could never have tackled. Nobody had tried to get through the pack so early in the season before. The pack was entered at latitude 04.40 deg. The ship got along very nicely at first,. and then she got into difficulties, and from December 13th to December 18th was entirely stuck. It was intended to run down to Seott Island for carrying out survey work, and to see whether migratory birds were nesting there, but owing to the drift the ship was carried awny and the island was never -sighted. DEEP SEA SOUNDINGS. The soundings taken in this pack were most inter "ting. The principal interest of the soundings related to the theory that the Antarctic continent, but so f«r as could be ascertained the soundings did little either to support or disprove that theory. Samples of water at different depths were also collected and the temperature noted, and thqse samples would be afterwards analysed. The Term Nova got through the pack on December 110 th. and on that night tile Admiraly range was sighted, about 120 miles oil'. (In December :11st the ship ran into a gale and picked up some ! sort of island of pack ice. She got away, j I however, on .lamiarv Ist, ami had a good rim down to Cape Oro/.ier. On account of a heavy s well a landing could not be made there, but from the ship a number of emperor penguins were seen on the shore. From Cape Crozier the Terra Nova sailed along to Cape Bird, the north-western end of Ross Island. ] A considerable amount of pack was encountered. which took practically the whole night to get through, and then, to everybody's great surprise, McMurdo Sound was found to be free of ice. The

ship was taken eight miles southward of Cape Royds, Lieut. Sliackleton'a old quarters, before the face of the,if* barrier wns reached. The place was named Cape Evans, after Lieut Evans, second in command of the expedition. Cape Evans was as far south as the ship could get. LANDING STORES. The landing of the stores was carried out most successfully. The hut was taken ashore iu sections, and put together expeditiously. The two motor sledges were got out, and the dogs and ponies landed, and then the stores. When the last motor sledge was lmnded out the ice appeared to be quite safe. Alongside the ship it was quite firm. A team of men started to haul the sledgea off to the camp, Mr. Day intended to take it across under its own power, but he found there was no fuel available at the time. It was fortunate he did not do so, for shortly after leaving the side of the ship the sledge broke through the ice, which had melted away below, and fell down into 125 fathoms of water. The men hauling the sledge held on, but the weight was too great, and when they were pulled to the edge ot the opening they had to let go. A NARROW ESCAPE. The loss of the sledge showed that the ice wag dangerous, and men prepared to go on board again, n line being run to near the spot. Mr. Priestly was walking along towards the .ship when he suddenly disappeared through a hole in the ice. He (Lieut. Pennell) got hold of him quickly, however, and pulled him out. There was a strong tidal stream which was apt to carry a man under the firm ice, and the water was so cold that it would chill a man at once.