HIMALAYAN GIANTS.

Evening Star, Issue 21316, 21 January 1933, Page 12

HIMALAYAN GIANTS.

Eveuest is not yet conquered, so far as is known, but there are strong hopes that the feat will be accomplished this year by a band of British mountaineers. Elaborate preparations have been made, and among other things the expedition wishes to discover whether or not the ill-fated G. L. Mallory and A. C. Irvine succeeded in their final dash towards the summit in 1924. The two men, equipped with oxygen apparatus, were seen quite near the top by their companions watching a few thousand feet below, but they were never heard of again. The present expedition, which was to have left England yesterday, was planned with the greatest of care. From the large number of applicants eleven experienced alpinists were chosen, among them being Mr F. S. Smythe, who led the successful expedition in 1931 to the top of Mount Kamet, the highest peak ever scaled by man. Some of his companions on that venture are also included. The leadership of these expeditions is a very important matter. On the present occasion the honour falls to Mr Hugh Ruttledge. He is in his fiftieth year, so that it is unlikely that he will take part in the final attack on the summit. That will probably be entrusted to Mr Smythe and one or two others. The leadership of an expedition such as this involves much more than the actual climbing. An intimate knowledge of the people and of the conditions of the country is essential to success, and Mr Ruttledge possesses these qualifications. He was formerly in the Indian Civil Service, has done much exploration work in the Himalayas, and has an extensive knowledge of the Himalayan people. More important still, he is on good terms with the Tibetans, for the initial part of the undertaking includes a five weeks’ trek across Tibet, and it is in that mysterious country that the base camp is to be established. This is to be no haphazard attack on Everest. Everything that science and experience can do to help has been taken into account. The expedition has been formed by a joint committee of the Royal Geographical Society and the Alpine Club, and the King gave it his blessing, accompanied by a cheque for £IOO. Before the final assault is made it is possible that' the summit of Everest will have,been surveyed from the air, for two planes are to make the attempt in March, the money for which has been supplied by Lady Houston, who on several occasions has liberally opened her purse for patriotic movements. All the flying members of this expedition have submitted to the most rigorous tests in order to determine their suitability for flying at the tremendous altitude that will he necessary. The flight will bo spectacular, but from the point of view of the mountaineer and the explorer it is doubtful if much advantage will be gained. What it will do, if successful, is to demonstrate onco more the efficiency and reliability of British engines. The giants of the Himalayas will offer opportunities for mountaineers for many years to come. Of those above 26,000 feet there' are at least twenty that have never been scaled. Everest is the monarch of all these towering peaks, and it will bo hoped that the Ruttledge expedition, which is composed entirely of British mountaineers, will succeed in this supreme test of courage, skill, and endurance.