650 



NATURE 



[February 13, 1913 



under the general direction of Dr. E. A. Wilson, 

 whose loss, along- with his leader, is now mourned. 

 At headquarters regular temperature, pressure and 

 w ind observations had been kept up, and balloon 

 work had been carried out for the stud}' of the 

 upper atmosphere — an investigation new in 

 antarctic research. Magnetic, gravity and tidal 

 observations, the study of the ice and biological 

 and geological investigations had also been made. 

 W'ilson himself, desirous of studying the winter 

 breeding of the emperor penguin, had led a short 

 expedition to Cape Crozier, very noteworthy from 

 the fact of its having been made in June, July and 

 .\ugust (winter). 



Meanwhile the work of laying depots for the 

 march to the pole had been carried out, and the 

 march itself was begun on November 2, igii. 

 Scott had lost nearly half his ponies, and, anxious 

 not to risk the remainder further than absolutely 

 necessary, he delayed the start of the march for 

 a month. In his last message he designates that 

 as a contributory cause of the disaster. Almost 

 from the outset the season appears to have been 

 bitterly imfavourable. However, last year's last 

 message showed the polar party going well, within 

 150 miles of the pole, where it was left by Com- 

 mander Evans, Scott's second in command, who 

 brought back the news. 



And now the story is taken up by Scott him- 

 self, within a few hours of death. His diary is 

 an imperishable memorial, not only of a struggle 

 against overpowering odds at the moment, but 

 of the foresight which was so essential a charac- 

 teristic of his work. For in face of the fore- 

 knowledge of the inevitable end, he looked beyond 

 it to the reception of the news by the world, nearly 

 fi year later ; fighting against the last weakening, 

 he set down a clearly reasoned statement of the 

 causes which had led to the disaster — misfortunes, 

 he calls them ; he will not allow anv charg'e of 

 faulty organisation to be laid against himself and 

 his helpers. Their thoughts turned at last to 

 those dependent on them, and these Scott com- 

 mended to the assistance of the nation in terms 

 which will be forgotten by none who reads 

 them. 



The pole had been reached on January 18, 1912. 

 Scott's companions were Dr. E. A. Wilson, Cap- 

 tain L. E. G. Oates, Lieutenant H. R. Bowers, 

 and Petty Officer Edgar Evans. The last, who 

 was believed to be the strongest man of the party, 

 was the first to break down and delay the rest. 

 The conditions of going on Beardmore Glacier 

 were extremely severe, and here at last (February 

 17) Evans suffered concussion of the brain, which 

 hastened his end. Then on the Barrier the 

 weather conditions suddenly changed for the 

 worse, with very low temperatures and high 

 winds. Captain Oates fell gravely ill ; Scott notes 

 a shortage of fuel in the depots. On March 16 

 Oates, feeling death upon him, and knowing that 

 he held his companions back, went from them to 

 meet it. Scott, Wilson, and Bowers pressed on, 

 Ijut within eleven miles of one of the depots (which 

 NO. 2259, VOL. 90] 



was afterwards found by the relief part\- in good 

 order) a blizzard fell upon them. They had food 

 for two days ; Scott wrote his last message when 

 they had been imprisoned for four. A relief party 

 had been out for them ; it appears to have been 

 not very far, in either time or distance, from gain- 

 ing its end. But the remains of Scott and his two . 

 companions were not found till after the ensuing 

 winter, in November last. 



This is the end of a great explorer : a man 

 omni consensu capiix imperii, and capable, more- 

 over, of inspiring his followers with affection as 

 well as enthusiasm, of judging the worth of men, 

 and of making the best of their abilities. We 

 find not only that men who accompanied him on 

 his first journey to the south in 1901, as Wilson 

 did, were ready to accompany him again on hi> 

 second, but also that his inspiration helped others 

 to enter the field independently, as Shackleton did, 

 and already Dr. Charcot has placed it on record 

 that it was Scott who " opened the road to the 

 pole." Such honour, by itself, might have been 

 held to be scientifically barren, but the gains to 

 science of Scott's first journey, supplemented by 

 what is known of the results of the second, refute 

 any possible charge that he aimed merely at the 

 breaking of a record. It has been said of him 

 that he must have risen high in his profession, 

 and indeed, considering how much of his life was 

 devoted to the Antarctic, he did so. Born at 

 Devonport in 1868, he was in the Britannia as a 

 naval cadet in 1881, and afterward served succes- 

 sively on the Cape station, in the Channel and 

 Training squadrons, and on the Pacific station, 

 before specialising as a torpedo lieutenant. He 

 was promoted commander in 1900. On his return 

 from the Antarctic in 1904 he was promoted cap- 

 tain, besides receiving the C.V.O. and many other 

 honours, including the Royal medal and a special 

 medal from the Royal Geographical Society, the 

 body which has throughout been most closely 

 associated with his exploring work. In the course 

 of naval service between his southern journeys, 

 he was at the Admiralty as Naval Assistant to the 

 Second Sea Lord. 



Dr. E. A. Wilson, as has been said, was chief 

 of the scientific staff; in the former expedition he 

 had served as artist and zoologist on vertebrates. 

 He was an alumnus of Cheltenham College and 

 Caius College, Cambridge. Captain Oates was of 

 the 6th (InniskiUing) Dragoons; he served with 

 distinction in the South African war, and on the 

 present expedition his special charge was that of 

 the ponies and mules. Lieutenant Bowers was 

 commissariat officer of the southern part}', and 

 F.vans was a tried antarctic traveller, having 

 served on Scott's first expedition. 



The nation has reason to be proud of these men, 

 who have laid down their lives in the pursuit of 

 geographical knowledge ; and it will respond 

 generously to Scott's last appeal : "Surely, surely 

 a great, rich country like ours will see that those 

 who are dependent upon us are properlv provided 

 for." 



