4 i2 WORST JOURNEY IN THE WORLD 



" Scott was to have sent back instructions for the dog 

 party with us, but these have, it would seem, been for- 

 gotten " ; but it may be that Scott considered that he had 

 given these instructions in a conversation he had with Atkin- 

 son at the top of the Beardmore Glacier, when Scott said, 

 "with the depot [of dog-food] which has been laid come 

 as far as you can." 



According to the plans for the Polar Journey the food 

 necessary to bring the three advance parties of man-haulers 

 back from One Ton Depot to Hut Point was to be taken 

 out to One Ton during the absence of these parties. This 

 food consisted of five weekly units of what were known as 

 XS rations. It was also arranged that if possible a depot of 

 dog-biscuit should be taken out at the same time : this was 

 the depot referred to above by Scott. In the event of the 

 return of the dog-teams in the first half of December, which 

 was the original plan, the five units of food and the dog- 

 biscuit would have been run out by them to One Ton. If 

 the dog-teams did not return in time to do this a man- 

 hauling party from Cape Evans was to take out three of 

 the five units of food. 



It has been shown that the dog-teams were taken farther 

 on the Polar Journey than was originally intended, 1 indeed 

 they were taken from 8i° 15', where they were to have 

 turned back, as far as 83 35'. Nor were they able to make 

 the return journey in the fast time which had been expected 

 of them, and the dog-drivers were running very short of 

 food and were compelled to encroach to some extent upon 

 the supplies left to provide for the wants of those who were 

 following in their tracks. 2 The dog-teams did not arrive 

 back at Cape Evans until January 4. 



Meanwhile a man-hauling party from Cape Evans, con- 

 sisting of Day, Nelson, Clissold and Hooper, had already, 

 according to plan, taken out three of the five XS rations for 

 the returning parties. The weights of the man-hauling 

 party did not allow for the transport of the remaining two 

 XS rations, nor for any of the dog-food. Thus it was that 

 when Atkinson came to make his plans to go South with 



1 See PP- 353' 3 8 3- 2 See PP- 3 8z > 3 8 3- 



