SHACKLETON'S EXPEDITION.

Taranaki Daily News, 5 August 1916, Page 4

SHACKLETON'S EXPEDITION.

THE ATTEMPTED RESCUE. A THRILLING STORY.. By Cable—Press Association—Copyright. Received August 4, 8.15 p.m. London, August 4. Monish, Vincent, and McCarthy, three of the crew of the Endurance, who volunteered to accompany Sir K. Sliaekleton in a small bout from Elephant Island, have arrived in London. Monish, in an interview, was optimistic as to the chances of those marooned on Elephant Island, especially under the able leadership of Wild. The worst feature is that the maropned men may think the small boat had foundered. There was one chance in a hundred that the boat would get through. When they first landed at Elephant Island, Wild prospected and found a, -iamp in the north-west and it was christened Wild's Beach. It was wild in every sense; the wind blew everlastingly, and they had to crawl on hands and knees to make headway. In the Weddel Sea there was absolute calm and we called it "windless sea," but at Elephant Island it was always blowing gales, and the journey was worse than the expectations. When things seemed hopeless, Shackleton rose as usual to the occasion. "We are going to get there all right," he said, and they did, but had the. greatest difficulty in making South fieorgia through enormous seas on a dead lea shore. 'lf Shackleton hadn't set a reefed sail," said Monish. "we wouldn't have been alive now. As it was, we had to bale continuously, but the wind shifted at a critical moment in our favor. Our water was exhausted, as we reached the wrong side of South Georgia. All were frost-bitten. We managed t"o kill three albatrosses, and that gave us a supply of much-needed food. We had tasted nothing nicer since we had dog cutlets, when the Endurance was smashed."