xxxvi WORST JOURNEY IN THE WORLD 
and Mawson, and there are few men living who have so 
proved themselves as polar travellers. 
I have dwelt upon this side of the early sledging defi- 
ciencies of the Discovery to show the importance of experi- 
ence in Antarctic land travelling, whether it be at first or 
second hand. Scott and his men in 1902 were pioneers. 
They bought their experience at a price which might easily 
have been higher; and each expedition which has fol- 
lowed has added to the fund. The really important thing 
is that nothing of what is gained should be lost. It is 
one of the main objects of this book to hand on as com- 
plete a record as possible of the methods, equipment, food 
and weights used by Scott’s Last Expedition for the use of 
future explorers. “‘ The first object of writing an account 
of a Polar voyage is the guidance of future voyagers : the 
first duty of the writer is to his successors.”’ 4 
The adaptability, invention and resource of the men of 
the Discovery when they set to work after the failures of 
the autumn to prepare for the successes of the two follow- 
ing summers showed that they could rise to their diffi- 
culties. Scott admitted that “food, clothing, everything 
was wrong, the whole system was bad.”’? In determining 
to profit by his mistakes, and working out a complete 
system of Antarctic travel, he was at his best; and it was 
after a winter of drastic reorganization that he started on 
November 2, 1903, on his first southern journey with two 
companions, "Wilson and Shackleton. 
It is no part of my job to give an account of this j journey. 
The dogs failed badly: probably the Norwegian stock- 
fish which had been brought through the tropics to feed 
them was tainted: at any rate they sickened; and before 
the journey was done all the dogs had to be killed or had 
died. A fortnight after starting, the party was relaying— 
that is, taking on part of their load and returning for the 
rest; and this had to be continued for thirty-one days. 
The ration of food was inadequate and they became 
very hungry as time went on; but it was not until Decem- 
1 Scott, Aalss of le ieee vol. i. p. Vii. 
ve 7/3? 
