45° A rctic and A nt arc tic Exploration [part ii 
except Clark, the cook's mate and laboratory attendant, 
and Weller, who was in charge of the dogs. 
A colossal amount of work and responsibility fell upon 
the shoulders of Captain Scott. Fortunately we had, in 
the person of Mr Cyril Longhurst, an admirable hard 
working and conscientious secretary, though he was then 
very young. Close attention was given to the supply of 
provisions, as one of the most important considerations. 
The food for the sledge travellers was mainly pemmican. 
It used to be made at Clarence Yard of the very best 
quality, but the art was lost. Scott had to fall back 
upon the very inferior article made at Chicago, and a 
better kind manufactured by Beauvais at Copenhagen. 
He himself visited the Beauvais factory, and ultimately 
took 500 lb. of American and 1500 lb. of Beauvais' pem- 
mican. Extreme care was taken in the examination of 
the preserved meats, soups, vegetables, and fruits. Dr 
Collingridge, medical officer for the city of London, ap- 
pointed Mr Spadaccini for this duty, and 10,250 lb. in 
1542 packages of other provisions were accepted, and 
231 lb. rejected. But Captain Scott was deeply impressed 
with the urgency of supplying fresh meat to his people 
whenever it was possible. 
Our dockyards had also lost the tradition of the 
clothing, sledge equipments, and sledges, which had been 
brought almost to perfection as supplied to the Franklin 
search expeditions. Scott had to turn to Norway for 
these things, and he was a good deal guided by Armitage, 
whose experience was the most recent, though he saw 
to the matter himself in Norway. The peltry, reindeer 
sleeping-bags, 4 bales of Lapland grass, and 70 pairs of 
ski (7 ft. 11 in.) were supplied from this source, as well 
as nine 9 ft. sledges of Nansen's pattern with broad ski 
runners, five of 7! ft., and five iron shod and fastened to 
be used for work in winter quarters 1 . 
Scott thought that it might be useful to have a captive 
balloon, whence to reconnoitre and obtain more extensive 
1 The sledge flags were of the same pattern as in the Arctic expedition 
of 1875-6. The cross of St George at the hoist to denote that, whatever 
family the bearer may belong to, he is first and foremost an Englishman. 
The fly is divided per fess with colours of the arms of the officer, undivided 
if one colour, with the crest or principal charge in the arms, swallow-tailed, 
with a border or fringe of the colours of the arms. 
