206 THE NORTH POLE 



rougher ice nearer the land should be done by one 

 division after another, in succession, in order to save 

 the strength of the main party for their final drive. 

 One great advantage which I had on this expedition 

 was that, owing to the size of my party, whenever the 

 men in this pioneer division became exhausted with 

 their arduous labor and lack of sleep, I could withdraw 

 them into the main party, and send out another division 

 to take their place. 



Supporting parties are essential to success because, 

 a single party, comprising either a small or a large 

 number of men and dogs, could not possibly drag (in 

 gradually lessening quantities) all the way to the Pole 

 and back (some nine hundred odd miles) as much food 

 and liquid fuel as the men and dogs of that party would 

 consume during the journey. It will be readily under- 

 stood that when a large party of men and dogs starts 

 out over the trackless ice to the polar sea, where there 

 is no possibility of obtaining a single ounce of food on 

 the way, after several days' marching, the provisions 

 of one or more sledges will have been consumed by the 

 men and dogs. When this occurs, the drivers and 

 dogs with those sledges should be sent back to the 

 land at once. They are superfluous mouths which can- 

 not be fed from the precious supply of provisions which 

 are being dragged forward on the sledges. 



Still further on, the food on one or two more sledges 

 will have been consumed. These sledges also, with 

 their dogs and drivers, must be sent back, in order to 

 ensure the furthest possible advance by the main party. 

 Later on, still other divisions must be sent back for the 

 same reason. 



