THE SHACKLETON EXPEDITION.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 16165, 29 August 1914, Page 8

THE SHACKLETON EXPEDITION.

• INSPECTION OF THE ENDURANCE. PERSONNEL " ; (Feom Odh Own Correspondent.) ; LOiMJOiN, July 17. AJI arrangements are complete ior the ' departure ol the Endurance. Alex- , aatua has been on board, accompaaiiea by tne Dowager-lMnprets 01 iiussia, uud has given two silk nags and a mascot. One ui the flags is her Majesty's own persona) standard, the other is a. Union Jacu, wtuie ! tnu mascot is a beautiiul medallion in , enamel, surrounded by crystal, the design , representing St. Christopiier. It is expected that the King will inspect the vessel [ at Gowea at the end of the- month, prior : to departure for Buenos Aires. Lying in the docks, the chief features noticed by the visitor are the Endurance's ■ overwhelming strength and the superiority of the accommodation she offers in comparison with many of tile other vessels l fitted for Polar- work. A barquentine of , 350 tons, she was built privately as a yacht for cruising in Polar regions. She can carry about 150 tons of coal, and can steam '■ some 10J,- knots at an expenditure of six • tons a day, or six to seven knots at an 1 expenditure of four tons. Her builder in the Santa Fiorde in Norway constructed her on rule of thumb [ methods, and has to his credit as n*any as 45 whalers. All the men who worked on her were old hands, none being less than 60 years ago. For the most part the Endurance is of oak, but her crossbeams are of fir. as this wood, though less stout than oak, will give where oak would snap, and is therefore able to stand a greater strain. Her keel and keelson are sft deep, and her skin some 2ft thick, flie interstices being filled with rock salt to prevent the ravages of insects, and in addition to this there is protection by Ehe&thing two or three inches in thieknuss. Sir Ernest Shackleton proposes to take up his quarters in the captain's cabin, situated right aft. There are about 35 bunks on board. Requisite alterations were few, most of them having been made with the object of increasing the space for coal and stores, and for giving additional bunk space. The smoking-room was turned into a large cabin that will probably accommodate the scientists. The'dogs will be put on the upper deck aft, and a special crow's nest is being fixed to the foremast to assist in the navigation of the vessel through the ice. THE WEDDELL SEA PAETY., The Endurance is to carry the expedition to the Weddell Sea, and after landing the party she will undertake the work of exploring the neighbouring coast, and afford facilities for geological,, geographical, and other work. She will leave the Antarctic during the winter months, and will return in the following year to pick up the party that will have been landed. The Weddell Sea party will consist of :— Sir Ernest H. Shackleton, leader of the expedition. Mr Frank Wild, second in command, in charge of provisions. Mr George Marftton, in charge of general stores, artist. Mr Tom Crean, in charge of sledges. Captain Orde Lees, R.M.L.1., in charge of motors. Lieutenant F. Dobbs, Royal Dublin Fusiliers, in charge of section of dogs. Lieutenant Courtney Brocklehurst, in charge of a section of the dogs. Mr James Wordie, 8.A., Cambridge, geologist. Mr E. W. James, 8.A., Cambridge', B.Sc. London, physicist and magnetician. Mr Leonard H. Hussey, -B.Sc. London, assistant magnetician and meteorologist. Mr F. Hurley, photographer and kuW, matographer, a member of the " Welcome" expedition to the Soudan. Mr V. Studd, Cambridge University and Camborne School of Mines, geologist. Lieutenant Frank A. Worsley, R.N.R., of New Zealand, will have navigating command of the Endurance on the voyage from London to Buenos Aires and the Weddell Sea, and will afterwards take part in the surveying and exploring of the coast. Mr Jeffreys, chief officer of the Endurance. Mr Hudson, navigating officer in charge of sounding and dredging. Mr A. Cheetham, third officer and bos'n. The crew of 10 will consist of ex-naval men, trawling hands from Hull and Grimsby, and others from Labrador. ROSS SEA PARTY. Arrangements for the Ross Sea ship Aurora are not yet quite complete. There remain two vacancies, and these are to be filled by another doctor and a biologist. The names available are: — Lieutenant Aeneas Mackintosh, RiN.R., leader and meteorologist. Mr Ernest Joyce, in charge of dogs and zoologist. Mr W. Wild (brother of Mr Frank Wild), in charge of stores and provisions. Dr Macklin, surgeon. LUNCHEON IN THE HUT. On the wharf alongside the Endurance is a curious wooden building, consisting of a large single room with double doors, roughly similar to those of a decompression chamber, and lighted by a few tiny windows placed high in a sort of tower which rises in the centre. It is the hut which is to serve as the living quarters of the Shackleton expedition at its main base, and Sir Ernest used it this week to entertain a number of distinguished guests at luncheon, while later, tea was served under the same roof. Before the hut is dismantled, the various parts will be numbered so that its re-erection in the Antarctic will be as rapid as possible. Those who were in it the other day included: — Sir William Durm (master of the Shipj wrights' Company), the wardens of the I company, Aqmirai Henderson, Sir J. Wiles, Mr A. F. Yarrow, Mr A. J. Fells, Mr J. Bell White, and a number of members of the expeditionary party, Captain Noel (marine, superintendent of the S.S. and A. Company), Captain de Gerlache (of the Belgian service), and. many more. The hut has been specially designed to catch the snow, and thus ensure the maximum of warmth with the minimum of <ires. OBJECTS OF INTEREST. Visitors naturally found the storeshed rather fascinating; the boxes of preserved food told their own tale. The scientific apparatus awaiting shipment attracted much attention, particularly the Lucas sounding machine, with its 7000 fathoms of fine wire, and the dredging machine capable of picking up specimens at a depth of 500 fathoms. THE SNOW BOGS. Of the hundred dogs shipped' at Montreal—all picked animals and the best that Northern Canada can supply—99 completed the journey to London. Nothing much to boast of, perhaps, as regards pedigree, there is in all of the animals tho strain of wolf mixed with some recognised breed of dog that produced the combination known as Huskie, and that mixture cannot be beaten for speed, courage, and endurance under the most unfavourable conditions. Until they left Winnipeg fish had been their chief article of diet, but report says that they have taken kindly to biscuits.