AN ANTARCTIC EPIC

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 37, 7 November 1919, Page 8

AN ANTARCTIC EPIC

GREATEST SLEDGING FEAT KNOWN

THRILLING FIGHT FOR LIFE

Mr. Ernest E. Mills Joyce, at present in Wolliiigton, who has been appointed second in command of tho British Imperial Antarctic Expedition, is an exnaval .man with a fine record. Ho is a man of splendid physique nnd is well litted for tho position, having been in command 'of the Boss Sea leg of the Shackleton Expedition of 1314-17, after the death of Captain Mackintosh. Mr. Joyce was educated at the Greenwich Eoyal School, and entered tho Royal IVavy in 1891. His first taste of poinr life was when he .went/to Iceland in ISD3. After that lie spent three years on tho of..l\mvfnundla"ii. ami, was on H.M.S.; Sybil when she was wrecked on the coast of South Africa in 1300. He was a member of the famous Naval Brigade which served in the South African campaign, and when the late Captain Scott called at Capo Town en route for ■ the Antarctic, he joined that expedition, retailing safe and sound in 1301. It was. his good work on the Discovery which.brought him under tho notice of Sir Ernest Shackleton, nnd when in 1000 tho latter was fitting out his expedition Mr. Joyce, then in charge of tho boom defence.nl Gibraltar, forsook the Navy, nnd took charge of the,sledges, dogs and. stores with that expedition. It was Mr. Joyeo who published the first book ever printed in the Arctic, or Antarctic. IVre were only a limited number of copies of "Aurora Australia," and they were all disposed of at twenty guineas per copy. He returned from the Shackleton Expedition in 1003,- and coming out to Australia served as an officer of the Sydney Harbour Trust for three years. He then joined the Shackleton Expedition of 1911. This expedition (or his half of it) sulTvtf- - ed .Treat privations, through the ship breaking away unexpectedly, but despite the hardships and sufferings the obieclivu of the party was achieved. The story of ■l the sledging journey was described by Sir Ernest Shackleton as "one of the biggest deeds in jiolar exploration." The Long Traverse. The party consisted of two sections of three men each. One consisted of Captain Mackintosh. Rev. Smith, and Mr. Ernest Wild, R.N.; and the other of Messrs. Joyce, E. Richards, and T. \ Hayward Avith iciir tiii-sM. 'I'm- parts*, ' '•"• £ j in S2dei. south in January after having been out since'the previous Soptemher. They proceeded south, and in 63deg/ Spencer' Smith gave- <)ut. He was left in a tent with provisions, and tho rest left to lay the depots at 83.3f1drg., which was accomplished. On Hie return they picked up Smith ana nut him on a sledge, and started back on. their 109-mile trek across 'lie ice. They got within two miles of Captain Scott's crave when they were overtaken by a blizzard which lasted fourteen days, but on the sixth day Joyce decided to tret under wav as the provisons were giving out. Thev had their last feed, and owing to extreme weakness it took four haul's to pack the sledges. Spencer Smith faintcci as he was placed on the , sledge. After the party got under weisjb, Mack; intosh collapsed. Joyce then decided to le«>'e tho two invalids with Wild to look after them, in order to try and make tho donot ahead, and he left with the blizzard still raging at a rate of from 'JO to fill miles an hour. All the food was turned over to Wiltf., It consisted of lfi biscuits and 2} ounces of meat extract. The decot was ten miles away. : Jovee started off with Richards and Hayward and four dogs,, nnd practically an empty sledge- After fourteen hours* travelling three miles and eight hundred yards were covered, whereas six weeks before, .tliev had been able to do ten miles a day with 13801b. on the sledge—now their were only dragging 2001b. The Hut Sighted On. the fourth day after leaving the ' (rick 'men. the depot was sighted. They had been without food for the whole time, and the dogs for five nays, but Jovce would not kill the dogs, as he knew it would be impossible to return nnd drag back (he sick men without their aid. and Joyce says Hiat they were and better companions dur-insr-'this time of stress than could be ."•imasrined. They just crawled to the o'epot, taking over two hours to cover the last hundred yards. Then followed the struggle of pitching the tent. Under ordinary circumstances it would take five minutes, but owing to their awhil v>eak.neia the job took over two hours. With the lent up, they were able to light a "Primus" stove, and a cup;Of;hot dried milk was servea'. It seemed to fill themall up. In tho meantime.,the dogs, were given plenty of pemmican,,but'it was hours, before they attempted- to • oat, so extreme' was their utt'w.exhaustion. All this time the blizzard., .was,; raging, nnd the temperature, 25 degrees below zero, made things very uncomfortable. The party got their strength back "radually by feeding every two hours.

■ On tho socond day they dooidecl to steer ■ couth again to rescue their comrades, though the blizzard still continued with unabated fury. , When they were all •ready tlicy could not jet the dogs to budge, so he turned their heads to tho north ar.d they went away, at higrh speed, but as soon as they were turned to the south-they-stopped dead, and looked at onp another , with siicli wistful eyes, which said- as plainly as possible: "I don't want to go." After an hour's coaxing the.v went forward slowly, but after an hours' march Haywawl. who li'ad been | complaining, collapsed. Hi? logs refused to so—scurvy had got him. H" had spent some yew in Northern Canada. and was n very strong man, but once '-curry sreta it?, orriivon a man there is no cure' savo fresh food, and tlm party was oyeir 100 miles from that. JTnywnnl rns wit ■"i the sledse. and .Tnvee and TCic'vi-rdi. with the four do?s. ndvinccd c low l v through tho hewlinsr - Wi7.z,T'rl. 0" tli" <oventl> ifln.r nfte'r lea-vim th" einlc party. tliev f'liind' thorn a<r-iin. Wrl cme out nf the but and reported tli.it th« in^fl'l-i' were still alive. but extnvr-->lv weak fV,rtly " f t"r arrival the- hud T "nod. .and .Tovce. Wehards. a"d Wild ducr twi'-o and sWI/re A«t of the frozen Know and got going again. T hn Trsk to the Pass. j Tho predicament of having three sick Bien, and only tiirco well ones ami lour dogs to drag them over 100' miles was u stuggerer, but fortunately the blizzard fetif.l continued, and for the first time in the annals of polar-sledging the party bles?ed 'the blizzard. A sail was set' 011 the sledge, niul the dogs, knowing that they were homeward bound, went oif at a great pace. 'l'hey. proceeded day after day, tending their sick companions as well as they could, the temperature being down to 40 degrees below zero. It was not easy to work, but as long as the wind continued they could do a mile an hour, but unfortunately the wind dropped, and for the first time for' weeks the sun appeared. Then came the real struggle. After fivo hours' travelling only yards wore registered. Joyce, liichiuds, and Wild wei'e getting weaker, ami scurvy Bigna were showing. They carried on for two days in that condition, when it wan decided that one man would have to stay behind for at least -three- weeks. Mackintosh volunteered. So three weeks' provisions were left willi him in a lent, and the party proceeded on witli Smith and Hayward. When within 11) miles of the base hut the Hev. Spencer Smith died. He had been ill for ad days, and had been drugged on a sledge tor J-l days in temperature that ranged to 30 degrees below zero! lie wius buried, and a bamboo cross was erected over his grave. It was hard to have dragged him so far, to dio within sight of the hut. Hayward was then dragged on the others getting weaker' and weaker. Bits of bamboo had to be lashed to the knees to prevent them doubling up in the light. • Had. that been allowed to occur they would stay in that position. J fayward's legs were bent double. After a tremendous struggle (ho base hut was reached. Throughout that journey the dogß were superhuman, but nt the end thoy were so done up that one could not get a bark out of. them—scurvy had attacked them, too; On arrival nt the hut seals were killed, and the fresh meat acted like Electricity on everyone. The dogs speedily lost their lassitude, and their welc.ome barks cheered everyone up.

Mackintosh Rescued. After a respite of 3G hours, Joyce, Wild, and Richards started back to get. Macintosh, with tho temperature 40 degrees below zero, and, nftor a sevoro straggle, ho was brought in. it has fa be remembored, in considering this epic in Polar travel, that the party had been out since September, and had travelled ISOO miles to lay tho depots for Shacklcton, who was to have come across the South Polar continent, 'line clothes they were wearing had been on for over twelve months, and were in rags. Their socks .wero tied up in canvas, and tho fur boots were full of holes. The scurvy, which overtook them, was caused through their being out so long and away from fresh food of any kind. The symptoms and effects of seur\7 were blackening of .the gums and their protrusion from the mouth; dilation of the white? of the eyes; limbs from the ankles black and swollen; doubling of the knees, blackening and swelling of the elbows, and indentations on the nails of the hands.

.Toyce and Wild were naval men. Tho latter gave his life for his country whilst employed on >a mine-sweeper in the Mediterranean. Both men eonkl not give enough praise to Richards, whoso optimism and cheerfulness were as a tonic.