THE SCIENTIFIC WORK.

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 13876, 29 October 1910, Page 10

THE SCIENTIFIC WORK.

INTERVIEW AVITH DR. WILSON-

NEW SUB-ANTARCTIC EXPEDITION.

The chief of the scientific staff is Dr. E. A Wilson, a gentleman who is wellknown to many people in Christchurch, and Avho was a member of the Disovery expedition. Dr. Wilson looks as though the years had passed him lightly by, and he is as lull of energy and vigour as over Coming up the harbour this morning on the Terra Nova, Dr. Wilson chatted in an interesting fashion about the scientific work which the expedition Avould be called upon to do.

"ion know,'"' Dr. Wilson sail, ''that the general plan we have i.s that there are to bo two stations. One will consist of twenty-lour people, located at McMurdo Sound, where they will build a hut and stay tvhile the ship goes on and establishes another base, with six mon, under Lieutenant Campbell, "R.N., at King Edward Land, 500 miles away Irom McMurdc Sound, and at the other extremity of the Great Barries-. Then tho ship goes back home, via the Balleney Islands and Cape North, round to the west and along the shelf wnere the .\ntarctic continent drops into deep AVater The ship's party will do biological work at these places until tho winter comes on, and then come .>n to New Zealand. Instead of laying up at New Zealand, the ship will afterwards work round som 0 of the -•,■!■- Autarctic Islands, and we hope to get a good deal of help from the members of previous sub-Antarctic expeditions as to tho work still to be done there. After that, of course, tho ship comes back for us the following summer. That means that we shall have tliis summer laying depots towards the South Pole, and tlie following summer there a. ill be the big journey to the Pole. No one knows vet Avho Avill be in th> Polo party—it will ba chosen from the fittest men iv the exjmdition. It will be a big party because wo have a lot of horses and dogs, and tho motor sledges, and they will require some looking after. "The interesting part of our work will be tho meteorology of the ice barrier, ico itself, and the geology of the South when Aye get to the Beardmore glacier. The geologist will be Mr T. Griffith Taylor (Cambridge), an Australian man. There, aro two other geo-Jogist-—Mr J. A. Thomson (Otago) and Mr F. Debenham (Sydney). The two biologists aro Mr E. W r .* Nelson and Mr D. G. Lillie. Mr Nelson stays -with us on the ice, and Mr Lillie remains on the ship. There aro three medicals —Dr. Atkinson, Dr. Levick, and myself. Dr. Atkinson will make a special study of biology and parasitology— he has been Avorking on tho latter in London for some time. Dr. Levick goes with Lieutenant Campbell, with "tlio eastern party. Tho physicist is Dr. Simpson, who has been working on meteorology at the station iv Simla, and also on atmospherical electricity iv * Lapland.

•'There are neiv points to be taken up in all the work," Dr. Wilson continued. "It is a matter of applying new instruments and "new theories. As far as meteorology is concerned, Dr. Simpson is to do some very interestiiv' work Avith small balloons, with which he is to investigate the higher currents. Then there is another physicist—Sir C. S. Wright (Toronto and Cambridge), who is also to carry out some interesting investigations. Mr Pouting, the photographer, is really a scientific artist. We seem to have all the countries of the Empire represented in the expedition—the party includes English, Scottish, Irish, Welsh, Canadian, Australian, and New Zealand representatives.

To the natural question, ''Will science be advanced by the expedition's labour-?" Dr. Wilson gave a confident affirmative. They expected, he said, to

get some absolutely now results. Tho magnetic and meteorological Avork Avere very important, and new methods were to bo applied. Then the expedition expected to do some embryological work Avith the penguins, aud that might produce, interesting results, especially with the Emperor penguins. There would be a lot of sounding and magnetic Avork. and this Avould be continued by the ship during her sub-Antarctic exploration. The Polar expedition is going to look out for some big game, in the shape ol whales. *We w-.uit to get hold . f M>me of tho smaller new whales down at the Antarctic,'-' said Dr. Wilson. "Wo hav 0 brought the equipment for killing them if we get the chance. Thero are several new species there, and w e must try to .secure .onto. It is possible tl at I may pay a visit to a Avhaling station in New Zealand, to see what 1 can ot the methods adopted here. Mr Lillie and myself have both been in the Northern seas and we A-isited a whaling station at tho Cape, to pick up what we could that avoulc! be useful to us.'' Time was nut aliened to hang heavily on the hand-; of tin scientists on their way out. Coming over from Australia .some albatrosses' and petrels were caught, and some magnetic work was done. On the voyage iron. Home to Australia thero was more activity, and a very interesting call av..s made at South Trinidad, Avhere two days were spent Collections of birds, insects, fish, plants, and marine phenomena Avcro made, and the result., A.hieh are not yet worked up, will probably be incorporated in the report of tbe expedition. In tho meantime, the collecticn will probably be stored at the Canterbury Museum until the expedition returns. As to tho sub-Antarctic expedition. Dr. Wilson mentioned that the Terra Neva would probably visit the Snares,tho Au-klanci, Maequarrie, and Campboll Islands. The course to pursue would be largely determined by the advice of members of the previous expedition Dr. Wilson referred with appreciation to the work done by the Nevv Zoaland_expedition, and stated that the Teira Nova would attempt to supplement the results than obtained. The last expedition, for instance, made no collection of vertebrates, and that j : could bo done by the Terra Nova. :