THE ATTACK UPON MOUNT EVEREST.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLIII, Issue 430, 22 June 1922, Page 4

THE ATTACK UPON MOUNT EVEREST.

The difficulties confronting the expedition which left England under the auspices of the Royal Geographical Society and the Alpine Club to undertake further exploratory work on Mount Everest and to endeavour to reach the summit of the highest peak in the Himalayas, are graphically set forth in an article contributed bv Captain E. A. M. Webster, F.R.G.S., lo the current issue of an English magazine received by the last mail. The stirring despatch from General Bruce. published in the "Standard" this week, shows that Mr Mallory and Dr. Somervell reached the North (ol on May 17 and a camp was established there at a height ol 26,000 foot. Next day Mr .Mallory, Mr Morshead and Mr .Norton climbed to 26,800 feet without using oxygen, thus, in the leader's own words, ■'accomplishing the most successful and most daring mountaineering feat yet recorded, and one of the greatest ieats of pure human endurance in any field of activity." The despatch details the establishment of other camps at different altitudes and speaks eloquently of the great obstacles British grit and determination of purpose have overcome. ••The chief difficulties have now ended," says General Bruce, "and the two main enemies aro shortness of time and unsettled weather." Until last year very little was known of Mount Everest. Its height was given on all atlases as 29,002 feet; but it has now been revised to read 29,141 feet.

"Climbing on the groat peaks oi' the Himalayas," Captain Webster (himseli an Alpine explorer) says, "is a very different thing from climbing in the Alps or the Caucasus, because not only is the pressure of the atmosphere at the greater heights of the Himalayas reduced to less than one-halt what il is at the level of the sea," thus seriously affecting the powers oi the climber, but "the great peaks of the Himalayas are situated in what is practically desert country," the nearest human habitations being "several days' journey away, over very rough country," and food supplies must lie sought still further afield. The climbing, again, is more laborious and dangerous; the climbers must camp at great altitudes, and that in itsell proves so exhausting that a night spent out in this manner often prevents the mountaineer from climbing much higher next day. The steep snow slopes are both difficult and dangerous. Unless the snow is hard, in which case steps have to be cut out to permit of the ascent, the work entailed being both arduous and exhausting, there is the danger of the snow sliding off and overwhelming the unwary climber, and a long steep snow slope is almost certain to defeat the Himalayan mountaineer. The Indian sun is, again, terrifically powerful, and in consequence the snow gets into a worse condition than in Europe, the soft snow making the mountaineer's progress most laborious. "Worst of all (Captain Webster says) the climber is at the same moment lird.de to sunstroke through the sun on his head and frost-bite in his feet." To reach the summit of .Mount Everest the party must be well equipped with supplies ol oxygen and the necessary apparatus for inhaling ii, It was notexpected that the summit would be attained this yea)', but it was thought the party would probably attain to a height of '27,00(1 feet and thus pave the way for the final ascent in 1923. However, the fact that a camp has been established at '-'5,01)0 feet and a dash made to an altitude of 20,800 without the use of oxygen, leads to the belief that success may be with the present daring baud of mountaineers.

I ■ The' New South Wales Mmis/ry w> ■>•<: to reduce the higher .stamp duties imp,, by Uio formor Ministry. ' \ house occupied by Mr J. W. Ryu in Paeroa was broken into Inst week-. and a small sum of money hlolen. IVtween'fivo and 10 o'clock on Sun uiirlit last Mrs Churton postiaistre--Watrakci, counted 58 earthquakes. Satisfactory results of the acclunatisni i«.n of grey goose in the Waikato were m.Honed at a meeting of the council ol the. Auckland Acclimatisation Society. Recent visitors to Rotoma stair tli business people there say the season ti are passing through is probably the wo ■ in the history of the town. William Henry Bakon, master of the Hid People's I-Jome'at Kumara, was yester.li at Greymouth lined £2 with eo,i- on ;i charge of assaulting an inmate- nam.-! Robert Ireland, aged 85 years. Al a meeting of the management eoti:mitteo of the Wanganui Rugby Union in week a referee was censured for havng struck a player after a match in winch ho had ofiiciated. The Manawaru Hockey Association has been advised that the North v. Sou h Island men's match will now be played at Nelson on July 29. Tim death rate in Sydney last year iv;i 9.52 per thousand of population, and th» Health Officer claims thai it has the lovve-u death rate of any ci'v in the world with a population of over half a million. Misses E Green, M. Mullins and D, Robinson, of the High School Old Girls' Hockey Club, have been nominated by thy Manawntu Hockey Association for inclusion in the North Island ladies' team in the match against the South Island, In responding to the- toast of "Old Boy* of Other Schools" at a social gathering' last evening, Mr B. J. Jacobs (Wellington College) referred to-the recent honour conferred on Mr J. P. Firth and the pride ol the Wellington old boys in their old college and their association. The whole of the English provincial newspapers and printing houses in the provinces and London have sewed the unions with notice of intention to reduce wage? by 15s weekly in order to bring the scale into conformity with the reduced cost of living. If the unions resist, the proprietors hava decided to close their offices. Mr J. Murray, in thanking the liiVu Schoi I old boys" for the memorial library la.-i evening at the annual reunion, .-la'ed that if the old hoys realised the extent of die appreciation of the present school, and iln i .lem to which the library was used, tliev ivinil-1 hi- amply rewarded to the work of raisin;; the necessary funds Ye-terday was the dare that is popularly rcgaided as "the shortesi day" in the yea.!'. As a'matter of fact the period of actual day, as determined by solar observations, is practically the same for several days thi3 week. The sun rose yesterday at 7.6 a.m. and set at 4.39 p.m. These times will remain unchanged until the end of this week, after which there will be a gradual lengthening of the hours of daylight. "The position of some employers in tho engineering industry to-day is a very serious one." said Mr J. Keir, an employers' representative at the Conciliation Council at Christchurch. Mr Keir -aid "half of the people will have to get out of it if something does not happen soon, Of course, you union people won't believo it. but we are telling you the truth. V\ a are in a position to know all the facts." "Things are better in New Zealand. BtiMiicss penph know that they are better," said ihe Prim" Minister when adore--;:. ; 'the member.-) of the Association of British Manutacturers at Wellington. He believed that iiit- deptvs.-ion was passing, but he pinph; -:-.\l that there was need stii] fur ec .nomy in public expenditure. The Mi:-ti-h Traile Commissioner (Mr R. W, Dalton) al.-o -ti'tick an optimistic note when addressin:; the gathering. Mr Ma.-sey states that according to tho official calculation made after the signing oi the Peace 'Treaty, Germany's debt to New Zealand was intended to be £26,000,COO. Half a million had come to New Zealand on account of the maintenance of troops in German territory, bur nothing lurther had been paid. Mr Massey consider, that Germany should pay something duo '.- fair and reasonable towards repairinn the damage that she wrought. In proposing the toast of ""Absent Old Hoi..-" at the High School olil boys' reunion last evening, Mr J. W. Rutherfurd mentioned the iine achievements of a number of old boys who now held prominent positions in ail the professions, lie made ..pedal reference to Dr. Pitt (Physics), Captain \i. Moseley, a well-known political and legal writer. Professor W. S. Vernon (Science), K. L.-rv (Law), J. Chapman (New Zealand member of the League of Nation- Secretarial at Geneva), and l)r Lancaster, of Manchester University. Si veral visitors from the Auckland district made favourable comment upon tho exhibits at the .National Dairy Show when in conversation with a "Standard' reporter to-day. The opinion expressed was that the ijuality of the produce fully warranted the statements made in the special edition of the "Standard'' or. Tuesday auent the pro-perily of the Mrnawatu, and the dishid' ui'd. lubtcd right to optimism by reason of its rich agricultural and pastoral resources. Incidentally, one of the visitors mentioned thai in the north the slump had iii ' been felt quite so severely as it had be. i; here but locally it appeared that a ra| id recovery was being made, this being considered a happy. reflection upon tho potentialities of the district.