i 9 o2] SLEDGING-FOOD 321 



not an ounce beyond. It is certainly suggestive of a normally 

 overfed condition in civilised mankind that when it is reduced 

 to this allowance it is conscious of much inconvenience from 

 the pangs of hunger. The great difficulty for the sledge 

 organiser is to arrive at this happy mean, more especially as it 

 can be regulated by no food allowance given in other parts of 

 the world which enjoy a less rigorous climate. The sledge- 

 traveller seems to need not only a special allowance, but also a 

 specially proportioned allowance. If one really goes into this 

 matter with some thoroughness, as I had the leisure to do, one 

 is involved in a bewildering array of facts and figures which it 

 would be hopeless to attempt to display with clearness to the 

 reader j but there are a few facts which may be quoted with 

 advantage, not only on the chance of their being of interest, 

 but because they show the exceptional requirements of the 

 sledge-traveller. And it must be remembered that, apart from 

 all theoretical conceptions in fixing the ultimate allowance for 

 our travellers, I had the benefit of a great deal of practical 

 experience, and can therefore speak with some knowledge of 

 the subject. 



The following is a physiological estimate of the pro- 

 portionate energy expended by an average man in a day who 

 does eight hours of hard mechanical labour : 



Heart action and respiration expend . 62, 100 kilogramme metres 

 Bodily heat produced expends . . 620,000 ,, ,, 



Mechanical work for eight hours . 125,000 ,, ,, 



Total 807,100 ,, ,, 



Assuming these figures to be even approximately correct, 

 the absurd disproportion of the energy expended on work is 

 noticeable, and hence man cannot be treated like a machine 

 and fed in proportion to the amount of work he does. It has 

 a very practical bearing on our subject, since it has been 

 remarked by even experienced sledge-travellers that if a party 

 are forced to remain in their tents for a day they ought to go 

 on half-food allowance, and I have seen some of our own 

 officers rather chagrined to find that appetites remained almost 

 vol. 1. Y 



