ANTARCTIC CHALLENGE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 20098, 8 November 1928, Page 8

ANTARCTIC CHALLENGE.

EQUIPMENT FOR MEN.

SELECTION OF CLOTHING.

"SITTING OUT" A BLIZZARD.

FEARS OF PHYSICAL FAILURE.

B¥ COMMANDER KICHAIID E. BIRD, NO. XII.

Tramping for twenty miles a day over snow-covered country in a driving blizzard, dressed in heavy furs and sealskin boots, is a, task that needs to ho tried to be appreciated. One day, with a heated house and warm food at its end would bo enough for any of us under ordinary circumstances, but at the Poles it is often necessary to repeat the march day after day for weeks, with a mush made of peminiean and an icy tent pitched on the bare snow for comfort at night. The earlier explorers faced this inevitably, but by the use of planes and intermediate bases wo hope to avoid some of it. Some, but not all. Laying the bases will require/ work with dogsleds; ko will short overiand exploring trips; so will our forced march, if anything should happen 011 the way to the Polo itself. And our clothing must be planned accordingly. It must be light, and yet warm enough to protect us against blizzards on the ground, and the extreme wind and cold of the upper levels of the air when flying. Part of it must be waterproof, particularly our boots, since the surface snow at times melts under the warmth of the summer sun. Reindeer Skin Clothing. In all one hundred and fifty suits and fifty sleeping-bag outfits will be taken. The suits will consist of pants made of reindeer skin with the fur outside, coats or parkas made of reindeer skin, with linings of fawn or squirrel skin with the fur turned inside. I 1 awn is the term given to the skins of young reindeers, lighter although less durable than that from older animals. For my own use I am taking a pair of bearskin trousers that I wore flying over the North Pole. They are heavier, but no warmer than reindeer.

Boots are particularly important. Sharp ice wears them away quickly. Moisture from perspiration, if not guarded against, will freeze the feet. Above all, they must be large enough. Tight boots would lead to chilblains and actual freezing. i Getting them large' enough means that space must be allowed for reindeer socks, worn with the fur inside, one or more pairs of wool socks, and possibly one pair of silk. Silk has the great disadvantage of keeping moisture in, not being absorptive like wool or cotton, although it also keeps cold air out. The soles will be made of sealskin, one of the hardest and toughest leathers known, while the uppers will be of softer reindeer. Between the sole and the foot will be a . layer of senna grass, to act as t an insulating space between the socks and the boot-sole. This will effectually prevent moisture from keeping the socks wet during hiking. Sweat is a most important factor, for if there is nothing to absorb it, such as the senna grass, it will soon freeze the feet. Gloves will also be very large, to enable woollen . mittens to be worn underneath, and will be made of both sealskin and reindeer hide. Fur Inside. In making up all these garments the rule must be remembered that fur outside keeps the cold out, and fur inside keeps the warmth in. For this reason all outer garments will be of .•skins worn as the animals wear them, when they are almost impervious to wind and moisture. The inner garments and linings' will have fur on the inside, to conserve the body warmth as much as possible. The reindeer skin sleeping bags will be furred on the inside. On the march it will be necessary to sleep in them completely dressed. In this way the fur will often become saturated with moisture during sleep, causing serious inconvenience and even death if a wet lj>ag is used night after night. The dodge that avoids this is a simple one, but not particularly well known. It consists only in turning the bag inside out, and exposing it to the outside air for a few moment.'!. The moisture freezes almost at once, and may then be brushed away like dust. An Arctic " Dodge." Another useful dodge I learned in the Arctic. Often on sled trips a sudden blizzard comes up which must be weathered without putting up tents. The method is simple; crouch in the snow so that the edge of the parka touches the ground, and bank up around it a layer of snow to keep out the wind. The fur hood is pulled closely about the face, and the hands placed Chinese fashion iu the long unrolled sleeves of the parka. In this way it "is possible to sit, out in comparative comfort a blizzard that might otherwise be almost fatal. ]n 'addition to the fur hoods some sort of mask may be used when flying and in high wind's. Coloured glasses that filter out the rays of light causing snowblindness will be standard equipment for everyone, protecting the eyes against wind and blowing snow as well. For repairs to clothing one hundred and nineteen reindeer pelts will bo taken, fifty of them bping young fawn skins. Martin Ronne, sailinakcr on Amundsen's ship, the Fram, will have charge, of all repairs to clothing and tents. Besides tho parkas, boots and trousers, ho will havo socks, moccasins, ski boots, wool waterproof ski-suits, Burberry wind-breakers, heavy underwear, and dozens of other articles of clothing to look after. Man Power o! the Expedition. In tho final analysis men form the real backbone of any expedition. Our preparations, both in thought and materials, have been as thorough as possible, hut all of .them can bo knocked into a hivjp by some failure in personnel. 1 anticipate none, hut it is a hazard for which there can be little preparation and no defence. There will be no failure in morale. Iho men who will comprise the expedition "ill possess the necessary qualities of mind and brain to endure the long strain of polar work, the loneliness, hardship and danger. They have been chosen not only for what t'hey know and can do, hut. for what they are. There is no room here to go into all the complicated details o their selection. Let nip only say that the finest pilot or scientist in the world would he less than useless if lie had no the quality of keeping up his own morale under strain, and of helping others to keep up theirs. Physical failure is our. only fear. Entirely unpredictable, it may crop up m the least expected places. '1 he best known example of it occurred during Scott s tragic expedition to tho South Pole. <-' of the mainstavs of the little party oi the final dash 'was Petty Officer bvans, whom Scott referred to as "our strong man." Yet when tho group began to die of exhaustion and exposure Petty ce Evans was the first to go, and his deatn was one of the factors, almost without & doabt, in tho final catastrophe.