British continue the Work—Carrier Pigeons in the Ice—Withstanding a Nip—A Sea-quake—Cape Adare Station—A Cosy Camp—Edible Fish—Death visits the Camp—Penguin Peculiarities—A Derelict Blue-bottle—The Welcome Postman—A Thrilling Episode.
British continue the Work—Carrier Pigeons in the Ice—Withstanding a Nip—A Sea-quake—Cape Adare Station—A Cosy Camp—Edible Fish—Death visits the Camp—Penguin Peculiarities—A Derelict Blue-bottle—The Welcome Postman—A Thrilling Episode.
The first British expedition for many years was that which sailed from the Thames in 1898 on board theSouthern Cross, under the leadership of C. E. Borchgrevinck, with the object of penetrating as far as was possible to the south and exploring the Antarctic continent, or as much of it as could be visited during a year's stay in those latitudes.
THE SOUTHERN CROSS IN THE ICE PACK
THESOUTHERN CROSSIN THE ICE PACK.
At work with the Theodolite.
The leader of the party had already been on this continent in 1894, when he voyaged into the Antarctic on board a whaler. He had landed on South Victoria Land and Possession Island, and had reached as far south as 74° 10' S. He had discovered a sheltered beach, near Cape Adare, which he recognised as an ideal site for the headquarters of an exploring party equipped for a prolonged stay. On the same occasion he was fortunate in finding a lichen growing on the rocks of Cape Adare, which was the first instance of terrestrial plant life being observed in the Antarctic. Imbued withenthusiasm as to the prospects of successful observation being carried out from this point, he strove to arouse public interest in the project. He found plenty of interest but not much financial support, until he had the good fortune to meet Sir George Newnes, Bart., in 1898. That gentleman caught some of the enthusiasm which actuated Borchgrevinck, and undertook to provide the necessary capital to enable the expedition to be formed and despatched. Thereafter there was no delay in the matter of organising the expedition. TheSouthern Cross, a small barque-rigged steamer of 276 tons, and built by Colin Archer, the builder of theFram, was secured, and placed under the command of Captain Bernhard Jensen. With stores and equipment for some years, a crew of Norwegians, an efficient scientific staff, and a large kennel of Arctic dogs, she left St. Katherine's Dock on August 22, 1898, amid much popular demonstration and sailed for Tasmania.
Arriving at Hobart early in December, she took in further supplies, and sailed again, on December 19, for the Antarctic. On December 30, in latitude 61° 56' S. and longitude 153° 53' E., she encountered the first ice, and a few days later was among the floes. Some carrier pigeons had been taken on board at Hobart, and they were liberated when the vessel was well within the ice limit. One was absent for about a week before it returned to the ship, but the majority returned almost at once.
On January 14, 1899, land—Balleny Island—wassighted in latitude 65° 44' S. and longitude 163° 38' E., and theSouthern Crosswas soon fast in a pack. Advantage was taken of the opportunity to lay in a store of seal flesh for the dogs. Two varieties were met with on the ice, leopard seals and white seals, both so unaccustomed to the presence of man that the explorers had no difficulty in walking up to them and killing them as they lay on the ice.
After being held for a week the first nip was experienced. The movement in the ice was very pronounced, and high pressure-ridges were thrown up. When the pressure caught the ship there was some uneasiness in the minds of those on board as to how she would stand the strain. She disposed of all fears, so far as she was concerned, by rising a clear four feet when the nip was at its worst, thereby adding another instance to the record of her builder as a cunning designer of ships for ice navigation.
For a period of forty-eight days they were held in the pack, and the ice then becoming more broken it was decided not to try any further to reach to the south of Balleny Island; instead, it was determined to go direct to Cape Adare, and establish the headquarters while the summer was still with them. On February 12, a few days after getting into open water, and when the vessel was making good progress under sail and steam, she was noticed to shake violently. No ice was in sight, nor anything else that could account for it, but there camea tremor which lasted for a couple of seconds, followed by another after an interval of three seconds. The phenomenon was noticed by men in all parts of the ship, and no explanation could be given for it. A couple of days later they ran into heavy weather, during which the temperature fell so low that everything became covered with ice, an experience which was very similar to that which befell the ships forming Sir James Ross's expedition in 1842. The ship had to lay-to for two days until the weather abated, and, on the second day after resuming her course, land was sighted, and theSouthern Crosssteamed into Robertson Bay in sight of Cape Adare and the spot where the headquarters of the expedition were to be built.
The camp consisted of four huts, which were promptly erected and filled with the stores and equipment. The landing party, consisting of ten, made their home in one of the huts, utilising the others for the storage of provisions, equipment, and other impedimenta. The dwelling-hut was constructed with three doors, opening inwards, so as to facilitate the escape of the residents should they become snowed in. Between the outer and the middle doors there was a four-foot lobby, off which a small room opened on either side. One of these was devoted to the development of photographs and the storage of the more delicate instruments, while the other was the taxidermist's studio. Both these rooms were lined with wool and fur,and were entered through small sliding trap-doors two feet above the ground. The interior of the hut formed one room, fifteen feet square, and with ten bunks constructed along the north and east walls, each bunk being closed in, so that the occupant could lie within, out of sight of the others, a very serviceable arrangement under circumstances where ten men are compelled to be in one another's company morning, noon, and night for several months at a stretch. The windows faced the west, and were double framed, with a space of three inches between the frames. The walls were also double, withpapier-mâchépacking between, while the ceiling was seven feet above the floor, also packed withpapier-mâché, and had above it an attic where stores which required keeping fairly warm were placed.
Before they had everything completed on shore, a furious gale sprang up, and from February 23 to 26 all the energies of the party were required to keep the ship from being lost. She dragged her anchor and drifted dangerously near the coast before steam could be got up, and even when the engines were at full speed, she could barely do more than hold her own. Once, two steel cables and a hawser were run out round a jutting rock to afford her some stay, but they snapped like threads when the puff caught her, and for the rest of the time she was kept standing off and on under the lee of Cape Adare. During the winter theexplorers had further experience of the character of these southern gales, the wind often attaining a velocity of eighty-five miles an hour, representing a force capable of lifting up and carrying bodily away such a thing as a whale-boat; while the air was, at such times, filled with pebbles and small stones blown from the high lands behind the camp. On one occasion, so fierce was the strength of the wind, that it was found impossible to crawl on hands and knees, and with the assistance of a guide-rope, from the hut to the thermometer-box a couple of hundred yards away. The heaviest member of the party, a man over thirteen stone, was blown from the rope and nearly lost while attempting the journey.
On March 2 everything was in order at the huts, and the shore party landed to take up their residence. The flag presented to the expedition by the Duke of York was hoisted, theSouthern Crossdipped her ensign to it, everybody cheered, and the vessel steamed out of the bay for New Zealand, leaving the devoted ten the only occupants of the great unknown continent which lies 2500 miles to the south of Australia.
THE AURORA AUSTRALIS
THE AURORA AUSTRALIS.
Drawn by Dr. E. A. Wilson.
They were not long before they commenced work. Cape Adare was explored and its height determined to be 3670 feet above sea-level. Vegetation, in the form of lichens, was traced up to a thousand feet, to which level it was found the penguins made their crude nests and hatched their young. Snowlay deep after three thousand feet, but no signs of life, vegetable or animal, were discovered at that altitude. In the waters below and around the cape several specimens of algæ, medusa, hydroids, and other low forms of marine life were secured. In addition to these specimens it was also discovered that there was abundance of fish in the deeper waters of the bay. These were caught, both by net and line, and the members of the expedition were agreeably surprised when it was found that they were nearly all edible, for a constant diet of preserved food soon palls, even on the healthiest appetites. As the ice spread farther out over the bay the fishing was conducted through a hole cut through the ice, and it was no uncommon experience of the fisher to be suddenly confronted with the startled eyes of a seal which had risen from the depth below, under the belief that the opening was a blow-hole for his convenience.
On May 15 they saw the sun disappear below the horizon, above which it would not reappear until July 27. The sun, as it disappeared, presented a curious optical phenomenon. Its reflection appeared as a large red elliptical glowing body which gradually changed into a cornered square, while the sky, in its immediate vicinity, revelled in a blaze of colours. As the sun slowly sank, the colours grew in intensity, reaching the height of their vivid beauty as the last of the globe sank out of sight. The Aurora Australis continued to givethem displays of colouring throughout the time when the moon was not shining and the sky was otherwise dark. The temperature sank very low, at times, during the night, -25° Fahr. being recorded, soon after the sun went below the horizon, while later on the records were as low as -57° Fahr. Inside the hut, however, the cold was not severely felt, the construction proving excellent for the comfort of the men. The numbers of seals killed for the dogs enabled them to cover the roof with the skins before it became snowed over, while the ample supply of fur and woollen clothing kept the expedition well clad.
EMPEROR PENGUINS
EMPEROR PENGUINS.
The most southerly inhabitants of the Globe.
From "The Siege of the South Pole," by Dr. H. R. Mill. By permission of Messrs. Alston Rivers, Ltd.
With one exception the winter passed without an untoward incident, the exception being the illness of the zoologist of the party, who, after being carefully nursed by the doctor and all the others, succumbed to internal complications and died on October 13. This was the only fatality during the expedition, and the loss of one out of so small a party naturally had a saddening effect on the survivors. Before he died, he indicated a spot a thousand feet up the slope of Cape Adare where he wished to be buried, and, needless to add, his comrades loyally carried out his last wishes. He died just at the time when the penguins, the study of which had so engrossed him, were returning over the ice to their nesting quarters. The first one arrived a few hours before his death, and it was taken to him, at his request. The place wherehe sleeps is on the line where vegetation ceases and above which the penguins do not build.
It was a pity he did not live to see the return of the penguins, for they came in myriads with the approach of spring. They advanced over the ice in a long line, walking in single file, and apparently in detachments of about sixty birds in each. They must have marched for many miles, as there was no open water nearer from whence they could have come, and they are not able to fly. As soon as they reached the land they spread out in such a way as to suggest that each pair went to the nest they had occupied before. These were simple affairs, consisting of little more than a few pebbles arranged in a ring on beds of guano. As a rule, two eggs were laid in each nest, and, for a month, male and female shared the labour of sitting on them, commencing in November and remaining on the nests until the young came out in December. The chicks were fed by the parent birds until they were fairly well grown, when they were driven into packs and left to look after themselves, with only occasional help from the older birds. When they were able to look after themselves, without further assistance, the parents departed. On such occasions a curious habit was observed. The birds of a detachment seemed to wait for one another until all were ready, when they would strut, in a solemn procession, to the water's edge. Usually the white breasts of thebirds were spotlessly clean, but the time they spent on the nests made them very dingy in appearance. As they strutted down to the water's edge they were all sadly in need of a bath, yet, on arrival at the edge, they would stand about, shiver, flap their diminutive wings, and manifest all the hesitation which is shown by timid bathers when about to take a plunge. Nothing would induce them to enter the water until they were ready in their own good time, attempts, on the part of the explorers, to drive them in, merely resulting in the birds turning round and strutting on to the land again. When at length the time came for the plunge, one would flap his wings, utter a cry, and take a header, whereupon the others would follow, one after the other, all in line and so rapidly that they presented the appearance of a stream being poured out of a bottle. The plunge over, they returned to the shore, spotless and clean.
As the gales were not over when the birds were sitting, they were watched to see how they would prevent themselves from being blown away by the fierce gusts. Almost as soon as the barometer gave indications of the approach of a gale, the birds were seen to turn their heads towards the south-east, the quarter from whence the wind came, and lie close to the ground, with their heads down and their breasts pressed close to it. On no occasion was a bird seen to be blown away from the nest.
During December, when the weather became milder, the interesting discovery was made that insect life exists on the Antarctic land. Some specimens were found among the mosses growing on the shore, and the excitement which followed the discovery led one of the Finns, two of whom were included in the party, to unconsciously play an effective practical joke on the others. He found a dead blow-fly in a case of jam and brought it to the hut as a trophy. For a time there was even greater excitement, until some one thought to ask where the fly had been captured.
On January 29, 1900, theSouthern Crossreturned. She arrived in the bay at a time when the explorers were sleeping after some heavy journeys. The captain landed, and walking up to the hut, pushed the door open and entered. He had the mail-bag with him, and flung it on the table with a loud cry of "Post." In a moment the bunks were empty, the sound of a strange voice rousing all the men, to say nothing of the prospect of receiving news from the world out of which they had been so long.
As there was no time to be lost, if they were to penetrate further to the South before the mild weather passed, they moved on board the ship as soon as they could, and by February 2 theSouthern Crosssteamed away again with all on board. They made excellent progress, passing Mount Melbourne on February 6, approaching near enough to thecoast opposite to Mount Terror to permit them to land, after which they steamed along the great ice-barrier until they found an opening, into which they steamed, so as to enable a sledge party to land and push forward to the South. It was this sledge party which reached "farthest South," being on February 16 in latitude 78° 50' S., the highest latitude reached up to that time.
But it was while they were ashore at Mount Terror that one of the most exciting incidents of the whole journey occurred. The party landed at a small beach which lay under cliffs towering five hundred feet above. In order to get photographs of it, the boat was despatched back to the ship for a camera, while Borchgrevinck and Jensen remained ashore. The boat had not gone very far when a great roar sounded in the air. Those on shore feared for the moment that a slide had begun in the cliffs over their heads; but it was not the rocks that were moving. A mighty glacier, which entered the sea near where they were standing, was shedding an iceberg from the parent mass, and the noise was caused by the rending of the ice as the millions of tons mass tore itself free. The beach was barely four feet above the water, and, as the berg crashed into the sea, it sent up a great wave that swept along the coast. The men on the beach barely saw it coming before it was over them. Pressing themselves against the face of the cliff at the highest point they could reach, they held onfor dear life while the icy water surged up and over them. After the first wave had passed, others followed, though these only reached up to their arm-pits, and had it not been for a projecting point of rock, which served to break the force of the waves, there is little doubt but that both would have been swept away. The full force of the waves was shown only a few yards away from where the two had stood, stones being torn loose and the mark of the water being left twenty feet up the face of the cliff.
Having reached "farthest South," the homeward journey was begun on February 19, and three days later theSouthern Crosssteamed into Port Ross, in the Island of Auckland. The expedition was then practically at an end, having succeeded so well in its objects that it was able to claim that it had located the Southern Magnetic Pole as being in latitude 73° 20' S. and longitude 146° E.; had discovered insect and plant life on the Antarctic continent; had reached the farthest South, and had added very considerably to the geographical and scientific knowledge of the world.
Modern Means and Methods—Private Enterprise leads—TheValdavia—TheBelgicaExpedition—International Action adopted—The German Expedition—An Ice-bound Land—Fresh Trade-Winds.
Modern Means and Methods—Private Enterprise leads—TheValdavia—TheBelgicaExpedition—International Action adopted—The German Expedition—An Ice-bound Land—Fresh Trade-Winds.
Towards the end of the last century there was a distinct revival, in European scientific circles, of interest in the still unsolved problems of the frozen South. Many causes contributed to this. The gradual narrowing of the northern sphere, and the activity displayed in that region by the Americans, to whom it especially appealed, led the European geographers to remember the great amount of work yet to be done in the South. The achievements of the Ross expedition, which had satisfied public curiosity for the time being, now only stimulated curiosity as to how much more could be ascertained by the use of modern steamships and all the other improved appliances that had done so much to help in Arctic work.
For a time private enterprise operated, and several vessels were despatched, from time to time, some with excellent results; but something more than private enterprise, working individually, was requiredif all the benefits of a thorough exploration were to be obtained. In her brief experience in 1874, H.M.S.Challengerexamined, by means of sounding and dredging, the floor of the ocean to the south of Kerguellen Island. The evidence collected pointed to the existence, still further to the south, of an area of land approaching continental dimensions. In 1898 a German steamer, theValdavia, with Professor Carl Chun on board, left Cape Town, rediscovered Bouvet Island, which had not been visited from the time it was first seen by Captain Cook, and collected further evidence, by sounding and dredging, of the existence of extensive land nearer the Pole.
A Belgian, M. Adrien de Gerlache, fitted out a ship, theBelgica, and sailed from Antwerp, in 1897, to explore the area lying to the south of South America. In the early part of the voyage a new strait was discovered between Danco Land and Palmer Land, but in February 1898 the ship became involved in the ice and remained in it for a year, drifting between 69° 40' and 71° 35' S. latitude and 80° 30' and 102° 10' W. longitude. During the winter they had a period of seventy days' darkness, spent on board, the effect of which was extremely depressing to their spirits and injurious to their health. It was found that the sea floor had shoaled up to the shallow depth of from 200 to 300 fathoms, suggesting the proximity of a large area of land, the actual existence of which,however, the members of the expedition were not able to observe.
An international agreement was then arrived at, through the influence of the International Geographical Conference, under which three nations, Germany, Sweden, and Great Britain, undertook to despatch to the Antarctic, three separate expeditions, one from each country. They were to sail from Europe in 1901, and while working on similar lines, and as much in common as was possible, each was to have its distinct sphere of operations. The British undertook the exploration of that area south of Australia, where Ross had located the volcanoes Mount Erebus and Mount Terror; the Swedes selected the lands lying to the south of South America, while the Germans gave their attention to the seas already visited by theValdavia.
POLAR OUTFIT USED BY THE BELGICA EXPEDITION
POLAR OUTFIT USED BY THEBELGICAEXPEDITION.
Tent, Sledge and Snow Shoes.
The German expedition sailed from Kiel on August 11, 1901, on board theGauss, and was under the command of Professor Erich von Drygalski. Their first objective was Kerguellen Island, and the chief work carried out was of a purely scientific character. It was originally intended that all the expeditions should return to Europe after passing one winter in the Antarctic. The Germans did so, but both the Swedes and the British were unable to carry out this part of the programme, the former in consequence of the loss of their ship in the ice, the latter because their ship was hard and fast in the southern ice. The Germans weremore fortunate in escaping the ill effects of what was an unusually severe ice season; but the other nations, by the longer stay they had in the frozen regions, were able to return with a much more comprehensive collection of information.
Leaving a small party at Kerguellen Island, theGausssailed to her allotted area, already revealed by the voyages of Cook, Bellinghausen, Biscoe, and Kemp. The ice barrier prevented her reaching a very high latitude, but the connection between Knox Land and Kemp Land, appearing as isolated coasts on the old maps, was proved. On this land, during the winter, large quantities of ice are formed, to drift out to sea in the form of huge packs which effectually guard the shore from intrusion. Forcing a way through the pack, theGaussfound a brief stretch of open water, the depth of which was found to shoal rapidly from 1500 to 120 fathoms. This led them to a rugged, steep coast line, occupying the position of what Ross had defined in 1841 as "ice cliffs." The land was too high and steep to permit them to land, and the ship, becoming involved in the ice within sight of it, winter quarters were established on the ice.
Severe gales hampered them in their work, but otherwise the winter passed without any untoward incidents. The rocks composing the cliffs of the coast were found to be ancient crystalline formations. The interior of the land was entirely covered, so far as could be seen, by a solid ice-capforming one of the most extensive glacial regions now known to exist. It seemed to be slightly receding, though no definite evidence of this could be obtained in so short a time as that at the disposal of the explorers.
One of the most useful observations made was that relating to the direction of the winds. The trade-winds blowing in the "roaring forties," and which serve so good a purpose in carrying ships round Cape Horn and the Cape of Good Hope to and from Australia, blow from the west towards the east. At the position occupied by theGauss, inside the Antarctic Circle, it was noticed that the prevailing winds were from east to west. Thus, if a clear passage could be found, vessels sailing round the southern ocean could select either an easterly or a westerly route as suited them best, instead of having, as at present, to follow that indicated by the wind.
At the expiration of the period allotted to them for their stay, the explorers were able to get free from the ice, and return to Germany. In this, as has been said, they were the only one of the three expeditions keeping to time. They arrived home after an absence of twenty-eight months, fourteen of which were passed in the South Polar ice.
Sails in theAntarctica—Argentine Co-operation—First Antarctic Fossil—Building the Winter Station—A Breezy Corner—Electric Snow—A Spare Diet—New Year Festivities—The Missing Ship—Relief that never Came—A Devastating Nip—Castaway—The Unexpected Happens—A Dramatic Meeting—Rescued.
Sails in theAntarctica—Argentine Co-operation—First Antarctic Fossil—Building the Winter Station—A Breezy Corner—Electric Snow—A Spare Diet—New Year Festivities—The Missing Ship—Relief that never Came—A Devastating Nip—Castaway—The Unexpected Happens—A Dramatic Meeting—Rescued.
The expedition to explore the land lying in the Antarctic region to the south of South America, which, under the international arrangement of 1895, was allotted to Sweden, was placed under the command of Professor Otto Nordenskjold, with whom was associated Professor Johan Andersson, both members of Swedish Universities. The steam barqueAntarctica, Captain C. A. Larsen, who had already had considerable experience in the Polar regions, was selected as the vessel in which the expedition was to proceed to the field of operations. The original plan was for the expedition to leave Europe in 1901, and to be back in Sweden by May 1903.
The detailed plan was to leave Sweden as early as possible in the autumn of 1901 for the South Shetlands, whence the vessel was to go to the east coast of the land known to lie to the south of those islands. Penetrating as far to the south as possible,a station was to be established at any convenient point and a party of six left there, with the necessary stores, apparatus, and equipment, to spend the winter, while the ship was to return north to the Falkland Islands and spend the winter with the remainder of the expedition carrying out scientific investigations at Tierra del Fuego and South Georgia. On the arrival of spring theAntarcticawas to pick up the members of the expedition who might be in Tierra del Fuego and South Georgia and proceed south to the winter station, take on board the members who had passed the winter there, and return at once to Sweden.
Unfortunately for the successful carrying out of the plans, the summer of 1902-3, in the Antarctic regions, was the coldest and the worst for ice conditions that has ever been recorded, and the expedition, instead of being able to carry out the plans laid down, experienced, instead, a series of unexpected happenings which was fatal to the exact working out of detail, but was rich in exciting and romantic episode. The Frozen South, like the Frozen North, will not yield its secrets to the first comer who demands them. The resources of the ice world, at either pole, are too vast to be overcome without a fierce and prolonged struggle.
Instead of one winter, the Swedish expedition spent two in the ice region, while, during the second, all the members of it were living on the ice, though as three separate parties, each within afew miles of the other, and all, more or less, ignorant of the proximity of their comrades. The peculiar circumstances under which they became separated, their experiences during that time, and the dramatic manner in which they were reunited and rescued, will form the chief incidents of the following pages.
Leaving Sweden on October 17, 1901, theAntarcticaproceeded to South America, where, at the request of the Argentine Government, a representative of that country, in the person of Lieutenant Sobral, of the Navy, joined the expedition. In return for this courtesy the Argentine Government offered to do all it could to assist the expedition. How magnificently it carried out its promise will be seen later.
Early in January the ship was amongst the ice, making her way as fast as she could to the neighbourhood of Erebus and Terror Gulf, where it was hoped a suitable site would be found for the winter station. The state of the ice, however, was not favourable to this scheme, and, by the time Seymour Island was sighted, it was evident there was little chance of working into more southern latitudes. Nearly ten years before Captain Larsen had visited this island, and had taken from it specimens of fossil wood and molluscs, the first fossils ever discovered in the Antarctic.
Before landing on it and seeking for more geological specimens, the leader determined to trywhether there was any chance of penetrating to the South from a more westerly longitude. The ship was turned on to a westerly course and kept on it until the beginning of February, but as no opening was to be seen through the ice to the south, her head was turned to the east once more, and she returned to the neighbourhood of Seymour Island. On February 10 the vessel was in Sydney Herbert Bay, which formed the hitherto unvisited part of Erebus and Terror Gulf. As it was obviously impossible to get farther to the south, Nordenskjold decided to establish the winter station on one of the islands in this vicinity.
A brief visit to Seymour Island did not reveal the wealth of fossil-bearing strata that was expected. Paulet Island was visited and an interesting circular lake was discovered, lying in a circular range of hills. The banks of the lake bore ample evidences that at one time there had been great volcanic activity at the place, and the lake was evidently formed in the hollow of the extinct crater. The place did not appeal to them as a site for the winter station, and, as further journeys revealed another island on the other side of Seymour Island, where there was a beach which appeared to be sheltered from the southward, the point whence the most violent winds blew, it was decided to build the hut there.
TheAntarcticaanchored in the bay opposite the beach and rapidly unloaded the camp equipment.When everything was almost landed, a movement in the ice at the mouth of the bay compelled the ship to stand out into open water, so the party of six, who were to spend the winter on the island, hastened ashore, where they had their hut to build and all preparations to make without the help, which had been counted upon, of the crew of the vessel. But this did not weigh heavily upon them, and they set to work with a will. In the course of a week, theAntarcticawas able to get into the bay again and to land the remaining stores; but by that time the hut was up and the adventurous six were almost settled down to their routine work.
A day or so after landing, Nordenskjold discovered that the island they were on—named Snow Hill Island—was peculiarly interesting from a geological point of view, for he found fossils of ammonites, a token of ancient life of the region which alone would have made the expedition memorable.
During the first month of their sojourn, the party were fully occupied in organising their scientific work and in taking preliminary trips through the island. At an early date they satisfied themselves that Admiralty Bay is a Sound, and that the portion of the continent extending to the vicinity was more in the nature of a group of scattered islands, with deep sounds passing between them, than a continuous stretch of mainland. The microscopical examination of the soil revealed the presence ofnumerous bacteria, while the examination of the waters showed that the lower forms of life were well represented. On the land there were abundance of penguins, seals, and migratory birds; but otherwise there was an absence of the animals found throughout the Arctic regions.
On one point they had reason to be dissatisfied with the position selected for the station. At the time the site was chosen it was believed that they would be well sheltered from the force of the gales. The reverse was found to be the case. Gales came from the south-west for days together and blew with a velocity that was astounding. On one occasion a large bag of fossils, left on the steps of the hut, was blown yards away; while on another, a barrel of bread was carried off, and a whale-boat was lifted over a second boat and flung against a mass of ice, a distance of twenty-one yards. When the boat was found, after the storm had abated, it was lying keel upwards, with the greater part of one side smashed in. The oars, thwarts, and inside planks were scattered and broken, even the zinc plating being stripped off and blown away.
A curious phenomenon was observed during the progress of these gales. The air became saturated with electricity to such an extent that the metal parts of the instruments gave shocks to the fingers when touched, while the tips of a man's fingers glowed with luminosity when outside the hut inthe dark. As a similar thing occurs in the Sahara during the progress of a simoon or sand-storm, it was considered that the amount of electricity was caused by the friction set up by the particles of snow carried along in a never-ending cloud by the gale. The rate at which the dry particles of snow moved was tremendous. An extra severe gale carrying away the wind-gauge, it was not possible to keep a complete record of the velocity of the gales, but from the records secured, it was demonstrated that, during the first half of June, if the hut had travelled with the same velocity as the wind rushed past it, a distance of 14,900 miles would have been covered, or as far as from the hut to Sweden and half-way back.
As winter approached, the storms obscured the sky and the sun was not often seen. They were not far enough south to lose it altogether, and all through the winter they had the benefit of its presence, though not for many hours at a time. When it did come, however, it came with great magnificence. After a series of storms they saw it rise one morning, and the spectacle is described as gorgeous and beautiful. "The morning was so clear and bright that I absolutely do not know with what to compare it," Nordenskjold wrote. "A faint violet light lay along the horizon and over Cockburn Island, which forms the central point of view from the station. The sky gleams with a darker blue, and across it float longstreamers of ribbon-like clouds, which shine and flame in red. But ever in the colours there is something pale, a paleness which predominates with indescribable delicateness of tone in the tints of the horizon, and in the blue and white shades of the stretches of land, which contrast so strongly with the dull brown of our immediate neighbourhood, and even with the sharply defined ice wall of Snow Hill. At about ten o'clock a glowing spot begins to be visible on the horizon, and, presaged by a perpendicular pillar of fire, there rises what would be the orb of the sun, but which, in consequence of refraction, appears to us to be a broad flaming moving belt of fire. On each side of the sun there are two shining, intensely rainbow-coloured belts, forming parts of a ring, which, however, can be seen but imperfectly. The sun rises higher in the heavens and assumes by degrees his ordinary appearance, whereupon these accessory phenomena disappear, together with the moon, whose crescent has been visible in the sky until the last possible moment."
The winter passed without misfortune, and with the approach of spring preparations were made for the first long sledge journey. On this, and other journeys, they succeeded in travelling long distances over what was often heavy ice, on two meals a day. The first, which was the more substantial of the two, consisted of pemmican made into a thick porridge-like soup, the nutritiousqualities of which were felt even as it was being eaten. This was followed by coffee, meat, biscuits, butter and sugar. On such a meal the men existed and travelled all day, making no stop until the evening, when they had their dinner, consisting merely of pease or lentil soup, meat, chocolate, bread, butter, and, sometimes, bacon. Immediately they had eaten this frugal repast they were in their sleeping-bags and asleep.
After climbing the ice ridges, which rose along the shores of the mainland, they succeeded in reaching the land itself on October 18, though the only evidence of it was the appearance of some dark-coloured rocks which showed above the ice. They were then in 56° 48' S. and 62° 11' W. This was as far as they penetrated, and the rapidity of their movements is shown by the record they set of thirty-eight and a half miles in one day. Other shorter trips taken over the islands in the vicinity of Snow Hill Island resulted in the discovery of important fossils, including the bones of an unknown vertebrate animal, some mammoth penguins, as well as the leaves of different kinds of pine trees and several ferns. These were all regarded as belonging to the Tertiary period.
With the New Year of 1903 they indulged in festivities, not only on account of the season, but also in anticipation of the early arrival of theAntarctica. As they had no idea of spending twowinters in succession in the station, they had not been rigidly economical with their stores. There was no shortage in anything, but there was not enough to last them during a second winter on the same scale that they had lived during the first. When the days went by and grew into weeks, and no ship appeared, they began to take note of these things. For a time they kept on the lookout, and, at night, would conjecture at what hour on the following day theAntarcticawould appear, and by whom she would first be seen, but as the month slipped by and no ship appeared, they dropped the subject, with one accord, and, instead of discussing when the vessel would arrive, they talked about the best way of spending their second winter at the station. The penguin roosts were visited and large numbers of the birds were killed and stored away for winter food, while seals were slaughtered to provide food for the dogs and clothing for the men. Although they never discussed it, the idea each man had about the non-arrival of theAntarcticawas that she had become caught in the ice, and so prevented from reaching them until it was too late in the season. What had actually occurred never suggested itself.
After passing the winter as was arranged, theAntarcticahad proceeded to Tierra del Fuego and South Georgia, had picked up all the members of the expedition, and had steamed away to theSouth so as to reach the winter station early in January. As she advanced, however, she found the sea so blocked with ice that she could not follow the course she had sailed the previous year. When she arrived at Hope Bay, some miles to the north of the station, Professor Andersson and two companions landed with sledges and sufficient provisions to last nine men for two months. It was their intention to proceed over the ice to the station, while theAntarcticasteamed away to the west, in the hopes of finding an opening through the ice which would enable her to reach the station. If, on the arrival of the relief party at the station, theAntarcticahad not appeared, they were to return, with the other six, and wait for the ship at Hope Bay.
Before proceeding over the ice to the station the three built a small stone hut, where they stored the greater portion of the stores, and with the remainder on their sledge they started on their march. But the ice, which had been too compact for the ship to penetrate, was not compact enough for them to traverse. Delay after delay was caused by leads and channels, until it was forced upon them that they would not be able to reach the station until the summer was over and the ice formed solid over the sea. As by that time theAntarcticaought to have arrived at the station, they decided their best course was to return to the depôt at Hope Bay and await her advent.They did so, but no ship appeared, and, with the end of summer, it was clear to them that something had happened either to the ship or at the station, and that the only thing left for them to do was to make themselves as comfortable as they could. With the limited store of provisions they had with them it was necessary to go on short rations at once, though the capture of some penguins, the shooting of seals, and the catching of fish by means of a hook made from a strap buckle and a line of sealskin torn into strips, augmented their stock of food and gave them, also, in the blubber of the seals, fuel and light. Cooped up in their little stone hut, which was only built large enough, in the first instance, as a place to hold their stores, they went through the dreary months of winter with a contentment which was the very acme of heroism.
Meanwhile theAntarcticahad steamed away to the west, and then, a chance offering itself, had stood to the south until she was in the latitude of Paulet Island. She turned to the east, heading in the direction of the station on Snow Hill Island, when the ice caught her. For days she remained in the pack, those on board chafing at the delay and trying every device to get her free. But the ice was too strong, and at last they were forced to admit that they were caught for the winter. This was bad enough, but there was worse to follow. A movement began in the pack, and a pressure-ridgestarted directly for the ship. It was upon them almost before they realised it, and the crash with which she heeled over told its own tale. The ice had torn a length of her keel away, and had made a hole in her which it was impossible to repair.
Everything that could be got out was thrown on to the ice, and the ship's company formed themselves into sledge parties to convey as much as they could to the nearest land. This was Paulet Island, where they arrived after an arduous march and at once set to work to construct a shelter for the winter, which was now upon them. There they stayed, within a few miles of the station, and of the other party at Hope Bay, but all in ignorance of the proximity of one another, and quite unable to communicate.
With the first sign of approaching spring the men at the station made arrangements to resume their expeditions and complete the survey of the islands in their immediate vicinity. The first trip was in the direction of Hope Bay, and the party had been out some days when, in the dim light, one thought he saw an unusual dark patch on the ice in the distance. He drew his companion's attention to it, but neither cared to trust their eyes. As they approached nearer, the dark patch resolved itself into the figures of men, and a still nearer view revealed two such extraordinary creatures that one of the men from the station thought it wouldbe as well to have a revolver ready in case of emergencies. The two figures were in black garments, with black caps on their heads, and their hands and faces were as black as their clothes, while the upper parts of their faces were hidden by curious-looking masks. Beside them was a sledge.
With considerable uncertainty the men from the station approached, and were not reassured when they were asked, in English, how they were. "Thanks; how are you?" they replied. "Don't you know us?" one of the strange-looking creatures asked. "We're the relief party. Have you seen the ship?" Then a third figure appeared from behind an ice hummock where he had been preparing a meal. They were Professor Andersson and his companions, who were on their way, for the second time, to the station.
Without loss of time the reunited comrades made their way to the station, where soap and water and a fresh supply of clothes soon transformed the appearance of the three who had had so trying a time in the little stone hut at Hope Bay. But the situation was still fraught with anxiety, now that both parties realised something very serious had happened to theAntarctica. It was impossible for them to determine whether she had gone to the bottom, or had been beset in the ice. Only one thing was clear, and that was, that they would all have to stay where they were until some help came to them. While they were still debating whatchances there were of any coming before another winter went by, they were startled, one day, by the arrival of visitors. These proved to be a search party from the Argentine cruiserUruguay, which the Argentine Government had despatched as theAntarcticahad not returned at her appointed time. Help had come at a time and from a quarter least expected.
But the news that the cruiser brought added very much to the fears the explorers entertained as to the safety of theAntarcticaand her crew. If she had been beset, some of her company could have reached the station over the ice while it was still compact, or, if she was still afloat, she ought herself to have been able to reach them. The absence of all news made the members of the expedition gathered at the station more than uneasy as to the fate of their comrades.
The morning after the Argentine officers arrived, one of the men, looking out of the hut, exclaimed that eight men were coming over the ice. Under the impression that they were some of the cruiser's crew sent to assist in removing the baggage from the station to the ship, he went out to meet them, walking slowly, as he tried to decide what was to be done if they could not speak any language he knew. The others in the hut, watching him, saw him suddenly leap forward and then turn to them and wave his arms. "Larsen! Larsen is here!" they heard him shout.
With one accord they rushed out after him, and in a few moments were eagerly shaking hands with the eight men, who were a detachment sent out from the camp on Paulet Island to ascertain whether the party at the station was still intact or whether it had been rescued. The news was sent to the cruiser, and soon all the members of the expedition and their baggage were on board and the ship was steaming for Paulet Island.
On arrival off the coast no signs of the remainder of the crew of theAntarcticawere to be seen, so the whistle was blown. The men at the time were all in the shelter, sleeping, and the sudden sound of the whistle roused them. For the moment they could not believe their ears. Then one of them looked out and saw the ship, and the shout with which he and his companions greeted the sight rang far out over the water.
Professor Andersson and his two comrades had left theAntarcticaon December 29, 1902; the ship was nipped on January 10, 1903; and the castaways arrived at Paulet Island at the end of February. They had lived in the shelter they constructed, subsisting mostly on penguin, until November, when the Argentine cruiser arrived. Only one man had died.
The expedition reached Buenos Aires on November 30, 1903, having, during the time they had been in the Antarctic, collected a mass of interesting and valuable scientific information.
A Capable Crew—A Modern Franklin—Early Discoveries—Frozen in—An Historic Journey—The Record of "Farthest South"—How the Record was Won—Speedy Travelling—Receding Ice Limits—A Dying Glacier—The Secret of the Barrier—A Fatal Gale—Lost in the Snow—An Antarctic Chute—Prolonged Slumber—Antarctic Coal—Home with Honour.
A Capable Crew—A Modern Franklin—Early Discoveries—Frozen in—An Historic Journey—The Record of "Farthest South"—How the Record was Won—Speedy Travelling—Receding Ice Limits—A Dying Glacier—The Secret of the Barrier—A Fatal Gale—Lost in the Snow—An Antarctic Chute—Prolonged Slumber—Antarctic Coal—Home with Honour.
The British Expedition, despatched under the international agreement, was destined, not only to surpass the achievements of the other two, but also to establish a series of records superior to anything that has yet been accomplished in Polar exploration, either in the northern or southern hemispheres.
The members of the expedition, consisting of Naval officers and men, officers of the Mercantile Marine (Royal Naval Reserve), and civilian scientists, sailed from Cowes on August 6, 1901, on board theDiscovery, a vessel specially built for the purpose. The ship proceeded to New Zealand, and left there on November 28, 1901, for Victoria Land. They arrived there December 24.