PREPARATIONS FOR THE EXPEDITION. 65 



" I owe and tender you an apology for my long silence, es- 

 pecially since you have written me your letter of ]\Iarch 24th. 

 As you Avill be aware probably on the receipt of this letter, 

 Passed Assistant Surgeon Ambler has been ordered to duty in 

 the Jeannette. 



" I beg to assure you that this is intended to be no reflection 

 upon you, or disregard of your earnest desire and application 

 to form one of the Arctic Expedition. The limited space for 

 officers' accommodation on board the vessel has convinced me 

 that it may not be possible to carry more than one medical 

 officer. In this case it becomes imperatively necessary that 

 the one medical officer so selected should combine a thorough 

 knowledge of his profession (which you undoubtedly have) 

 with a considerable experience of ships and sailors (which 

 your short time in the service makes it no discredit to say you 

 have not). 



" Consultation with eminent medical officers in the navy 

 has impressed me with the conviction that the combination 

 above mentioned can be found best in the list of passed assis- 

 tant surgeons, and I have caused the position to be tendered, 

 through the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery, to Dr. Ambler, 

 who has signified his acceptance. 



"You will, I hope, understand and appreciate my motive. 

 I am placed in a position of peculiarly grave responsibility. 

 With all the respect which I have for you professionally, and 

 the regard which I feel for you personally, I hesitated to invite 

 you to become the only medical officer of the expedition, 

 simply because your experience of ships and sailors is not as 

 great as seems requisite in an undertaking of this kind. 



" If, however, I find that there will be room for a second 

 medical officer, that it will be wise to have one, and that you 

 are still willing to go, be assured I will gladly tender you the 

 place. I cannot forget and will not forget that you were the 

 first surgeon to volunteer for the Arctic Expedition (and, until 

 the present writing, the only surgeon to volunteer), and that 

 you have showed a zeal and persistence under trying circum- 

 stances of watching and waiting too valuable to be lightly dis- 

 regarded." 



