MAWSON DISCUSSES ANTARCTIC PLANS.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 24 June 1929, Page 5

MAWSON DISCUSSES ANTARCTIC PLANS.

VIRTUES OF DISCOVER IT. In August the famous vessel the Discovery will set forth once mure to face the southern ice, bent upon a voyage of scientific discovery, writes Sir Douglas. Mawson for the New York Times. The enterprise, which is under my leadership, is especially sponsored by the Australian government, though .some help ha.- been promised by the Dominion of New Zealand, ami very material assistance has been afforded by the government of the* United Kingdom in placing the Discovery at our •disposal without charge upon the expedition funds. Such preparations as are going forward in London arc in the hands of n small committee composed of Admiral Douglas, hydrographer to the Navy; J. D. Bor’ev, representing the Fisheries Department, Major R. G. ■Casey, representing the Australian Gov,•crumcnt, and mvself. Ship Weil Suited. , No stronger vessel of its class has •ever been constructed than the good .shin Discovery. She was built at Dundee' in .1900, expressed/ for the first British National Antarctic Expedition, whose operations extended over the period 1901-190-1, Under the conclusion af that expedition tiie vessel was sold by the committee of the Royal Geographical Society controlling her, to the Hudson’s Bay company, in whoso ■employment she remained as a trading vessel communicating with their Arctic .stations. ' s Shortly after the termination of the war’ the rising importance of the whale fisheries in the province controlled by “the government of the Falkland Islands and dependencies determined the institution of extensive research into matters of pure and ’applied science relating to the whale problem. For the conduct of these oceanographic and biological researches the Discovery was from the Hudson’s Bay company by the Falkland Islands government, The reconditioning proved in the end to be so extensive as almost to ■constitute the rebuilding of the vessel. Thus, nominally twenty-eight years old, she is now really a stronger and betterfitted vessel than when first launched. Discovery is a vessel of some 34ft. in'breadth and TPSfT. in overall length. Her not registered tonnage is only 300 -tens and yet she is one of the largest •*rafl ever built for this class of work.

The ship’s officers and crew will amount to about twenty-seven in number. Beyond these there will not be more than twelve members of special .staff, including the flying pilots. Though so admirably built for bill’feting ice and withstanding ice pressure,/Discovery, on account of extensive allocations for scientific equipment and quarters for the personnel, has the .advantage of limited bunker space. To make up for this a special Welsh anthracite'briquette will bo used. These are each 251 b. in weight, rectangular and clean to handle.