ANTARCTIC EXPEDITION.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 55, 28 November 1907, Page 3

ANTARCTIC EXPEDITION.

0 : ' THE VOYAGE OF THE NIMROD. (FROM oun SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT.) Christchurch, November 27. Tho Zoologist who will accompany the Antarctic landing party (Mr.'MafcKay) has had a fairly eventful career. Attached to tho C.l.V.'s, ho saw scrvice during tho South African War, and he has served in the Imperial Navy and Army as medical officer. Before leaving' Home he took a courso of instruction in fiirriory, and i 3 able to shoe a horse as capably as any-farrier. • The scientific investigations of the Nimrod's biologist (Mr. Murray) were a source of never-ending wonder, not to say amusement to the crew. "Why," said oiio A.8., "he usod to take little animals out of buckets of soawator. They were so small that we couldn't see them, and how, he could see them we don't know." Whenever an albatross was pulled oil, board, Mr.': Murray worked among the feathers in search'of parasites of unimaginable smalln'ess, but considerable scientific interest. The stay of tho Nimrod in Lyttelton 'will be an exceptionally busy time for all onboard aiid every day will be fully taken un with hard .work. The Lyttelton Harbour Board has arranged for dccking the vessel, storing her cargo, andberthage accommodation free of charge. ■ Though the Nimrod is spoken highly of by those who voyaged in her, thero is no disguising the fact that she knows how to roll and that her roll has some unusual peculiarities. Her custom was to roll almost to an angle of 40 degrees, thon partially recover herself, and_ finish off by rolling back almostto tho position sho at first rolled to. Consequent upon these high jinks, the deck wouldbe a-wash almost from stem to stern Speaking of the visit paid by tho Nimrod to Torquay after she left Cowes, one of the crow saj s that visitors innumerable inspected the ship. As an excursion steamer was to leave for Plymouth, and orders had been roceivcd to .let all and sundry come on' board a young man with his sweetheart went on board, under tho impression that it was the excursion steamer they were getting on ' Pre ' sontly they asked tho hos'n. "When does she sad? We want, to go to Plymouth." "This boats going to tho. South Pole," was the bosVs answer," and the girl said "Let's'get ashore out of this," and they' got o(T in double quick time. . '

Wo are heartily tired of Mr. Grays oil's "broken bottles." Why does ho keep rn'kinE them up? Why docsji't he drop them? We don't want him to t'(nw up the sponge, but do, for Heaven's sake, let him drop the bottles,—" Christian Commonwealth."-