BOY SCOUT ON QUEST.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIX, Issue 18247, 14 November 1922, Page 5

BOY SCOUT ON QUEST.

IMPRESSIONS OF VOYAGE.

LESSONS IN SEAMANSHIP. Bronzed and slimmer, although obviously more muscular than -when he left England in the Quest, the little ship of the Shackleton-Rowett Expedition, Boy Scout Marr reached London recently, and was met at Victoria Station by Mr. John Quiller Rowett, who was mainly responsible for financing the expedition. ~ Scout Marr has lost his shyness, but is uncommunicative, says a London paper. Modesty explains his reticence. When questioned on any particularly dangerous part of the undertaking, such as the journey from Rio do Janeiro tp South Georgia, the " Gate of the Antarctic"—where Sir Ernest Shackleton died—he half-closes one eye, says " Let me see, now," and then describes it dispassionately. " Yes, it was very rough," he said. " The waves were huge. The way the ship was thrown about was—well, very unusual. You can see what a good chance it gave me to learn seamanship. The gale soon became a terrific hurricane, with some waves more than 40ft. high. The weather stopped us from having Christmas dinner, or ■ jollification of any kind. " I found that for filling in spare time there was nothing lfte the graraaphone. It gave us many a very happy concert. We talked, and joked, and learned a lot— for one'is always learning, even during a sing-song evening—and we sang choruses or songs until the evening went quickly enough. Whenever my work allowed, I was pleased to show Boy Scouts in any particular port over the Bhip. They were very proud to show.me round their towns; I was very proud to show them over the Quest. " At Tristan da Cunha (the lonely British island in the South Atlantic) there was great interest, but I don't think they were as much impressed by. ua as an expedition as people were elsewhere.; as, for instance, the Brazilians were at Rio _de Janeiro. They seemed to want everything they could get, from us, and our stores officer gave them considerable quantities of tea, sugar, and other things. The coming of any ship is important to them for what it brings. " I am glad to be home, but I won't say I am glad it is all over. "Some of the misconceptions about the Antarctic of which I have learned since my return are amusing. Quite a lot of people seem to think most of the ice mountains, the growling Polar bears, and the' curiouß Eskimos. Of course, one doesn't see Polar bears there at all, nor Eskimos. There are pack ice, and floes and glaciers. Eskimos bolong to the Arctic. The people who go moat south are whalers and people like that. " There was plenty to interest, however, in big sea leopards, big Bquat sea lions, sea elephants, and penguins, among which strange pc.ddy-birds (pretty pigebn-like birds) moved. There was plenty of blubber, tho sort of stuff that one needn't try in a land of plenty." Asked what his future intentions were, Scout Marr, who before the expedition was reading arts and science at Aberdeen University, replied : "lam not certain. Perhaps I shall return to the university."