South: The Story of Shackleton's Last Expedition, 1914-1917 Flashcards
Ernest Henry, Sir Shackleton · Public domain edition · 159 cards · 44 chapters
Ernest Shackleton’s South recounts the 1914–1917 Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition and the loss and eventual destruction of the Endurance in Weddell Sea pack ice. This deck covers the expedition’s early besetment, winter routines, dogs and igloos, wireless failures, and crew precautions and incidents.
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Chapter 2 · Question
What did the Endurance encounter after passing through loose pack on January 9, and what did a sounding show?
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Chapter 2 · Answer
The Endurance reached open water, then encountered loose pack again at 1 a.m. on January 10, containing heavy hummocky ice and thick flat floes formed in a sheltered bay. The water became thick with diatoms by 9 a.m., and Shackleton ordered a cast; no bottom was found at 210 fathoms.
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CHAPTER II (part 1)4 cards
What did the Endurance encounter after passing through loose pack on January 9, and what did a sounding show?
The Endurance reached open water, then encountered loose pack again at 1 a.m. on January 10, containing heavy hummocky ice and thick flat floes formed in a sheltered bay. The water became thick with diatoms by 9 a.m., and Shackleton ordered a cast; no bottom was found at 210 fathoms.
Chapter 2
What did Dr. Bruce's Scotia Expedition discover in 1904, and how did he describe it?
Bruce discovered Coats' Land, encountering an ice-barrier at lat. 72° 18' S., long. 10° W., running north-east to south-west. He followed the barrier-edge south-west for 150 miles to lat. 74° 1' S., long. 22° W. He saw no naked rock, but rising slopes of snow and ice with shoaling water indicated land.
Chapter 2
Why did Shackleton want to make easting as well as southing on this leg?
He hoped to reach land east of Ross's farthest South and well east of Coats' Land. This mattered because the prevailing winds appeared to be easterly, so every mile of easting would count. He also noted the leads ran only north, north-east, or north-west, as if pointing them back.
Chapter 2
What precautions did Shackleton take around killer-whales, and why?
Killer-whales were becoming active around the ship, so Shackleton exercised caution in allowing anyone to leave the ship. He explained the beasts locate a resting seal by looking over a floe's edge, then strike through the ice from below for a meal; they would not distinguish between seal and man.
Chapter 2
CHAPTER II (part 2)3 cards
What did the Endurance's crew do when the ship was beset and coal was limited?
On January 27, the tenth day of inactivity, Shackleton decided to let the fires out. The ship had been burning half a ton of coal a day to keep steam in the boilers, and the bunkers held only 67 tons, representing thirty-three days' steaming. He judged they could not afford to continue this expenditure of fuel while the ship remained firmly held in the ice.
Chapter 3
What happened to Crean while chipping ice under the ship?
Crean and two other men were over the side on a stage chipping at a large piece of ice that appeared to be impeding the ship's movement. The ice broke away suddenly, shot upward and overturned, pinning Crean between the stage and the haft of the heavy 11-ft. iron pincher. He was in danger for a few moments but was got clear, suffering only a few bad bruises; the thick iron bar was bent against him to an angle of 45 degrees.
Chapter 3
Why did the wireless attempt to hear the Falkland Islands message fail?
James and Hudson rigged the wireless hoping to hear the monthly message from the Falkland Islands, due about 3.20 a.m. the following morning. James was doubtful about hearing anything with their small apparatus at a distance of 1630 miles from the dispatching station. They heard nothing, and later efforts were similarly unsuccessful; the conditions would have been difficult even for a station of high power.
Chapter 3
CHAPTER II (part 3)4 cards
What routine change did the Endurance undergo on February 24?
On February 24 the ship ceased to observe ship routine and became a winter station. All hands were on duty during the day and slept at night, except a watchman who looked after the dogs and watched for any sign of movement in the ice. The crew also cleared a 10 ft. by 20 ft. space around the rudder and propeller, sawing through ice 2 ft. thick.
Chapter 4
How were the igloos and dogloos around the ship built?
Worsley's party built them Esquimaux fashion from big blocks of ice with thin sheets for roofs. Boards or frozen sealskins were placed over all, snow was piled on top and pressed into the joints, and water was thrown over the structures to make everything firm. Inside, ice was packed flat and covered with snow for the dogs, which preferred to sleep outside except in extraordinarily severe weather.
Chapter 4
What happened to the dogs and how were they secured?
The dogs left the ship on the following day, with kennels placed on the floe along a wire rope to which leashes were fastened. They seemed glad to leave and yelped joyously. Tethering was simple: a chain end was buried about eight inches in the snow, ice fragments pressed around it, and water poured over all, which the icy breath of the Antarctic cemented in moments. Four ailing dogs were shot, and some suffered from worms that remedies could not effectively treat.
Chapter 4
What was the outcome of the wireless attempts at winter station?
The wireless apparatus was still rigged, but the crew listened in vain for the Saturday-night time signals from New Year Island, ordered for their benefit by the Argentine Government. On Sunday the 28th, Hudson waited at 2 a.m. for the Port Stanley monthly signals but could hear nothing. The chapter states that evidently the distances were too great for their small plant.
Chapter 4
CHAPTER III (part 1)4 cards
What were the 'tween decks converted into, and what was the new living area called?
The carpenter converted the 'tween decks into a living- and dining-room for officers and scientists, installing the stove intended for the shore hut. Cubicles were built and named individually, including 'The Billabong,' 'Auld Reekie,' 'The Sailors' Rest,' and 'The Fumarole.' The whole new quarters became known as 'The Ritz,' and meals were served there instead of in the ward room, with breakfast at 9 a.m. and dinner at 6 p.m.
Chapter 5
Why did the sighting of a new berg concern Shackleton?
A new berg about fifteen miles long appeared on the northern horizon. Shackleton notes that in that comparatively shallow sea a big berg could become stranded, making the island of ice a centre of tremendous pressure and disturbance amid the drifting pack. Having seen the smashing effect of berg against floe, he had no wish for the helpless Endurance to be caught in such a battle of giants.
Chapter 5
How were the sledge dogs trained, and what commands were used?
Dogs were trained in sledge teams using the commands 'Mush' (go on), 'Gee' (right), 'Haw' (left), and 'Whoa' (stop), words Canadian drivers borrowed originally from England. Early on there were many fights until dogs learned positions and duties. Each team had a leader whose willingness and ability to punish skulking and disobedience drove efficiency; men avoided interfering unless discipline threatened a fatal end.
Chapter 5
What did the dredging hauls reveal, and why was the mud troublesome?
Dredging brought up glacial mud, pebbles, rock fragments, sponges, worms, brachiopods, and foraminiferae; a haul on the 26th yielded a 75-lb. sandstone lump, fossiliferous limestone, striated shale, and sandstone-grit. The mud was heavy to lift and froze rapidly at the surface, making recovery of embedded specimens difficult. On the 24th the Girling tractor-motor brought in 500 fathoms of line in thirty minutes, including stops.
Chapter 5
CHAPTER III (part 2)3 cards
Why did the Endurance company hold a concert when the sun disappeared?
The chapter states that the disappearance of the sun is apt to be a depressing event in polar regions, where long months of darkness involve mental as well as physical strain. Despite this, the Endurance's company refused to abandon their customary cheerfulness, and a concert in the evening made the Ritz a scene of noisy merriment, in strange contrast with the cold, silent world outside.
Chapter 6
What curious solar phenomena did the men observe on May 8, and why?
The sun, which had made its last appearance seven days earlier, lifted more than half its disk above the horizon on May 8, then rose and set repeatedly between 11 a.m. and 1.20 p.m. These phenomena were due to refraction, which amounted to 2° 37´ at 1.20 p.m. The men calculated the refraction was 2° above normal, meaning the sun was visible 120 miles farther south than the refraction tables allowed.
Chapter 6
What was the 'Antarctic Derby' and who won?
The Antarctic Derby was a dog-team race held June 15, run from Khyber Pass at the eastern end of the old lead to a point clear of the jib-boom, about 700 yds. Five teams went out in dim noon twilight with zero temperature and a faint aurora. Shackleton was starter, Worsley judge, James timekeeper. Wild's team won in 2 min. 16 sec., about 10½ miles per hour.
Chapter 6
CHAPTER III (part 3)4 cards
What did Shackleton do to prepare for a sudden emergency as the ice grew restless?
He had sledging provisions, oil, matches, and other essentials placed on the upper deck near the starboard quarter boat, ready for a sudden emergency. He also had sledges brought aboard, set special and double watches, kept the dogs and sledges ready to board, and had the boats cleared away for lowering. He divided night watches with Worsley and Wild.
Chapter 7
What happened to the Endurance and Dog Town when the floe broke up on August 1?
The floe cracked and broke up under pressure, listing the ship 10 degrees to starboard, then heavily to port. Dogs and sledges were brought aboard eagerly without a fight. The ship was forced ahead, astern, and sideways, and took hard nips without a creak. Dog Town was destroyed—kennels crushed by ice blocks or swallowed when the ice opened and closed.
Chapter 7
What did the August 20 mirage look like, and what causes it?
The mirage turned distant pack into towering barrier-like cliffs reflected in blue lakes, with white and golden cities, castles, balloons, mushrooms, mosques, and cathedrals that rose, trembled, and vanished. Southern ice looked golden, northern ice purple. The text attributes it to refraction, intensified by columns of warm air rising from cracks and leads opened eight to twenty miles away.
Chapter 7
What did soundings and observations suggest about Morell Land and New South Greenland?
Soundings of about 1700 fathoms on August 10 and 1900 fathoms on August 25, plus clear mast-head views finding no land within twenty miles, led Shackleton to conclude Morell Land was likely another iceberg. He argued New South Greenland did not exist, placing the ship over 200 miles west of Morrell's position.
Chapter 7
CHAPTER IV (part 1)4 cards
What signs in September suggested the ice was becoming more dangerous to the Endurance?
The floes were seldom without movement, and the roar of pressure carried across the silent ice-fields as a threat and warning. From the crow's-nest the crew sometimes saw pressure-ridges forming as shattered floe rose and fell along the line of pressure. The area of disturbance would advance toward the ship, recede, and advance again, and by late September the roar grew louder as the disturbed area approached.
Chapter 8
What happened to the Endurance during the worst ice squeeze on September 30?
At 3 p.m. cracks alongside the ship began working laterally, and the ship sustained terrific pressure on the port side forward, heaviest under the fore-rigging. Decks shuddered and jumped, beams arched, and stanchions buckled. Shackleton ordered all hands to stand by. Just as the ship seemed near her limit, the huge pressing floe cracked across and gave relief.
Chapter 8
How did the return of seals in late September help the expedition?
Fresh meat for the dogs was running short, since nearly five months had passed without a seal and plankton was scarce. Seals killed on the 23rd and 26th and in early October provided meat for the dogs, blubber to supplement the small remaining coal supply for raising steam, and seal-liver as a welcome change in the men's own diet.
Chapter 8
What did the October 10 thaw reveal about the men's adaptation to cold?
The temperature rose from –10° Fahr. to +29.8° Fahr., the highest since January, and the ship became dripping wet between decks. The men found the warmth uncomfortable, though it would have left an unaccustomed person shivering. Shackleton observes that one grows to like familiar conditions. The thaw signaled winter's end, prompting preparations to reoccupy the upper cabins.
Chapter 8
CHAPTER IV (part 2)4 cards
What happened to the Endurance on October 24, 1914, at 6:45 p.m.?
The ship sustained heavy pressure in a dangerous position. Its starboard quarter was forced against the floe, twisting the sternpost and starting the heads and ends of planking. The ice had lateral as well as forward movement, bending the ship, and she began to leak dangerously aft. Shackleton rigged the pumps, got up steam, and started the bilge-pumps at 8 p.m., and all hands pumped through the night.
Chapter 9
When and why did Shackleton order all hands onto the ice?
At 5 p.m. on October 27, after the ice attack reached its climax at 4 p.m. The ship was hove stern up, and a driving floe split the rudder and tore out the rudder-post and stern-post. Decks were breaking upwards and water pouring in below. Shackleton ordered the fires drawn and steam let down to avoid an explosion, then men and dogs descended to the floe without a hitch.
Chapter 9
What was Shackleton's stated plan after abandoning the ship?
He proposed to march with equipment across the ice in the direction of Paulet Island, 346 miles away, the nearest point where food and shelter might be found. He noted a small hut built by the Swedish expedition in 1902, filled with stores he had himself purchased in London for the Argentine relief expedition. He told the men he had no doubt they would all reach safety if they worked their utmost and trusted him.
Chapter 9
What happened to the camp on the night of October 27?
After tents were pitched about 100 yards from the ship, the ice became involved in pressure around 7 p.m. and began to split and smash. Shackleton moved the camp to a bigger floe about 200 yards away, beyond the bow, crossing a working pressure-ridge via a snow-causeway built by a pioneer party. At midnight a crack ran through the camp, and the alarm-whistle brought all hands out to move tents and stores to the larger portion.
Chapter 9
CHAPTER IV (part 3)4 cards
Why did Shackleton decide to attempt a march rather than wait on the floe?
Shackleton argues that marching was the right choice: making five to seven miles a day north-west would greatly increase their chance of reaching safety. He also cites a psychological reason—men would do better feeling they were on their way to land than simply waiting for the north-westerly drift. He admits the issue was beyond his power to predict or control.
Chapter 10
What weight limit did Shackleton set for personal gear, and what did men do with the rest?
Personal gear was limited to two pounds per man, so only bare necessaries went on the march. Holes were dug in the snow as 'white graves' for private letters and personal trifles. Shackleton grudged even the two pounds but kept some mementoes, reasoning a man might need something to occupy his thoughts during a possible winter. Sovereigns were thrown away; photographs were kept.
Chapter 10
What happened to the weakest animals before the march began?
Sallie's three youngest pups, Sue's Sirius, and Mrs. Chippy, the carpenter's cat, had to be shot. Shackleton states they could not undertake maintenance of weaklings under the new conditions. Macklin, Crean, and the carpenter seemed to feel the loss of their friends rather badly. The dog teams were increased to seven, with Greenstreet taking charge of a new team.
Chapter 10
How far did the party actually progress on the first day of the march?
They covered one mile in a direct line north-north-west, but deviations made the distance travelled at least two miles, and relays brought the distance marched up to six miles. Some dog teams covered at least ten miles. They camped on flat ice that proved young and salty, since the older pack was too rough and too snow-laden for camping.
Chapter 10
CHAPTER V4 cards
Why did Shackleton move camp to a thick old floe and name it Ocean Camp?
Shackleton judged that the loose, wet snow surface made further marching impractical given four days of strenuous effort with little progress. He also considered that leads might open nearby, allowing the party to row north-west toward possible land. So he moved tents and boats about a mile and a half from the wreck to a thick, heavy old floe and called it Ocean Camp, expecting to wait there until conditions improved for a second escape attempt.
Chapter 11
How did the party obtain extra provisions from the sunken ship?
Wild's dog teams visited the wreck daily, collecting wood, ropes, and some provisions despite water over the forward deck. Knowing flour was stored in a hold cabin, they located the deck above it and cut through 3-inch planking with ice-chisels, though the spot lay under about 5 feet of water and ice. Cases floated up and were hooked out, adding two to three tons of provisions, about half farinaceous food.
Chapter 11
How was the blubber stove at Ocean Camp constructed and used?
A blubber-stove was needed since seals and penguins provided both food and fuel. After a failed attempt with a large iron oil-drum, the men ingeniously converted the ship's steel ash-shoot: holes were punched at the wider top for an oil-drum fireplace and a saucepan, another hole allowed two saucepans, and a chimney of biscuit-tins completed it. It could only cook hooshes or stews, and later the cook baked flat bannocks, hampered by lack of yeast or baking-powder.
Chapter 11
Why did Shackleton initially increase rations at Ocean Camp before later reducing them?
Shackleton had cut the allowance to nine and a half ounces per man per day, but after recovering two to three tons of provisions he increased it. He knew keeping the men cheerful mattered and believed larger rations could ease the depression caused by their surroundings until they adjusted to the new life. Later, as wintering in the pack seemed more likely, rations were considerably reduced again, and the men took it as a matter of course.
Chapter 11
CHAPTER VI3 cards
What roles did Wild and Shackleton perform each day during the march?
After all hands had turned in, Wild and Shackleton would go ahead for two miles or so to reconnoitre the next day's route, marking it with pieces of wood, tins, and small flags. They had to pick the flattest road with least hummocks, skirt pressure-ridges, and find and mark the best place to bridge leads or ridges with ice-blocks. This prepared track was then used by the dog-drivers for those toiling behind with the heavy boats.
Chapter 12
Why did the party abandon the march and establish Patience Camp?
After seven days of marching, the party had advanced only seven and a half miles in a direct line. The ice ahead was too broken and soft to sledge over, and there was not enough open water to launch the boats safely. With rations short, men weak, and food for only forty-two days, Shackleton calculated it would take over three hundred days to reach land. Thus they camped on the floe, naming it Patience Camp, where they remained for nearly three and a half months.
Chapter 12
How were the boats transported across the ice during the march?
The two boats, the James Caird and the Dudley Docker, were hauled in relays by practically all hands, about sixty yards at a time. Every twenty yards or so they stopped for rest and breath. The boats were kept close together in case the ice cracked between them. The boat-hauling party traversed the ground three times, while dog-sledges made two or three relays. Shackleton noted that without the dogs they could never have transported half the food and gear.
Chapter 12
CHAPTER VIII (part 1)4 cards
What did Shackleton decide about drifting on a berg instead of the floe?
The author argues against making a berg their home, reasoning he could not be sure it would drift the right direction, launching boats down its steep sides in a sea-swell would be dangerous, and the berg might split or overturn. He notes ice condition cannot be judged by surface appearance, since hidden faults may fail suddenly under strain. He resolves to stay on the floe until conditions improve.
Chapter 14
What diet did Shackleton's party have on the floe, and how did he describe it?
Shackleton stopped issuing sugar; meals consisted of seal meat and blubber only, with 7 ozs. of dried milk per day, plus a pinch of salt per man, the milk boiled for hot drinks. He wrote that the diet suited them since they could not get much exercise, and blubber supplied heat. Fried blubber slices resembled crisp bacon to their taste, though civilized persons might shudder.
Chapter 14
Why did Shackleton initially choose Deception Island as the destination?
Shackleton made up his mind to try for Deception Island after reviewing the situation. Admiralty sailing directions indicated stores for shipwrecked mariners were there, and summer whalers might not yet have deserted its harbour. Records also mentioned a small church erected for transient whalers, whose timber could be used to construct a seaworthy boat if necessity urged. The worst case would be waiting until whalers returned about mid-November.
Chapter 14
What happened to the floe on April 9, and how did the party respond?
On Sunday, April 9, the floe split right across under the boats at 11 a.m., the crack cutting through the site of Shackleton's tent. The party rushed gear onto the larger piece and waited. The fragments came together later, and all hands ate a full lunch of seal meat, Shackleton reasoning a good meal was the best preparation and every pound eaten was a pound rescued. At 1 p.m. the pack opened and channels became navigable.
Chapter 14
CHAPTER VIII (part 2)4 cards
Why did Shackleton turn the boats back from the open sea on April 10?
After rounding the north end of the pack and heading west, the deeply laden boats shipped sprays that froze on men and gear, covering them with ice. Shackleton judged it unsafe to continue, so at 3 p.m. he put the James Caird round and ran back for shelter inside the outer line of ice, where the sea was not breaking. The boats were then hauled up on a big floeberg and camped for the night.
Chapter 15
What showed the camp on the floeberg was not as safe as it looked?
About midnight the watchman called Shackleton: the heavy north-westerly swell was undermining the ice, and a great piece had broken off within eight feet of his tent. On the westward side the snow covering was yielding to the sea, and an ice-foot had formed under the surface. Shackleton decided there was no immediate danger and did not call the men, though the wind strengthened overnight.
Chapter 15
How did the boats finally escape the reeling berg on April 11?
At noon a long, narrow but navigable lane of open water stretched to the south-west horizon. When the chance came, the men rushed the boats over the edge of the reeling berg and swung them clear of the ice-foot as it rose beneath them. The James Caird was nearly capsized by a blow from below as the berg rolled away, but she reached deep water, and stores were flung aboard.
Chapter 15
Why did Shackleton abandon some stores and repack the tents?
To make the boats more seaworthy, the party left shovels, picks, and dried vegetables on the floe. Later, spray had dashed over the bows and frozen on the tent cloth, making it dangerously heavy, so the dome tents were stripped from their hoops and packed tightly. Shackleton says they then stripped to the barest limit of safety, carrying only what seemed essential.
Chapter 15
CHAPTER VIII (part 3)4 cards
Why did Shackleton decide to run for Elephant Island instead of Hope Bay?
The wind had shifted fair for Elephant Island, about one hundred miles away, while the pack separating the boats from Hope Bay had closed up during the night from the south. The men's condition was seriously worn, and Shackleton concluded they must make land quickly.
Chapter 16
Why did Shackleton order the boats to heave to at dusk rather than sail on?
Worsley suggested standing on all night, but the Stancomb Wills was barely discernible in the dusk. Shackleton judged it safer to heave to with a sea-anchor of oars, since the boats must not become separated and they might overrun their goal in darkness and be unable to return.
Chapter 16
What water problem troubled the men after leaving the pack, and how was it handled?
They had left the pack so suddenly that they took no ice aboard for melting, and without ice there could be no hot food. The Dudley Docker's single ten-pound lump was shared out. Later, raw seal meat and blood gave only momentary relief, so Shackleton rationed meat to stated intervals.
Chapter 16
What did Shackleton observe about frostbite among the 'oldtimers' versus the others?
Most of the people were frost-bitten to some extent, but the 'oldtimers'—Wild, Crean, Hurley, and Shackleton himself—were all right, apparently acclimatized to ordinary Antarctic temperature. Shackleton notes they later learned they were not immune.
Chapter 16
CHAPTER VIII (part 4)4 cards
Why did Shackleton choose the narrow beach at the northwest end of Elephant Island for landing?
Shackleton decided they must attempt the unattractive landing-place because two days and nights without drink or hot food had weakened most of the men, and he could not assume any safer haven lay within reach. A narrow channel showed as a break in the foaming water through the reef, and the Stancomb Wills was sent through first to test the landing before the James Caird ventured in.
Chapter 17
Who was the first man to land on Elephant Island, and why was the honor given to him?
Shackleton decided the honor of the first landing on Elephant Island should go to the youngest member of the Expedition, Blackborrow. He seemed almost in a coma, so Shackleton helped him, perhaps a little roughly, over the side. Blackborrow promptly sat down in the surf and did not move, because both his feet were badly frost-bitten — a fact Shackleton had momentarily forgotten.
Chapter 17
What did Shackleton's inspection of the beach reveal about its safety as a camp?
Shackleton, with Wild, Worsley, and Hurley, found obvious signs that at spring tides the little beach would be covered by water up to the foot of the cliffs, and that a strong north-easterly gale would pound waves over the reef against the rock wall. Well-marked terraces and a small piece of rounded wreckage confirmed past gales. He kept these uncertainties from the men so they could rest untroubled.
Chapter 17
What did Wild report after searching the coast in the Stancomb Wills?
Wild reported discovering a sandy spit seven miles to the west, about 200 yards long, running out at right angles to the coast and ending seaward in a mass of rock, with a long snow-slope at the shore end where a dugout might be made in the snow. He said it was the only possible camping-ground he had seen, and thought heavy gales might spray it but not break over it.
Chapter 17
CHAPTER VIII (part 5)4 cards
What caused the salt-water boils afflicting many expedition members?
The author attributes the boils to constant soaking with sea-water, the chafing of wet clothes, and exposure. The men's wrists, arms, and legs were attacked. Rickenson is singled out as an "eager soul" who did more than his share of work and attempted more than he was physically able to accomplish, and he needed prompt medical attention.
Chapter 18
What happened to the ringed penguins at the rookery, and why did it matter?
At 8 a.m. the ringed penguins mustered near the water in orderly fashion and then migrated, diving through the surf and heading north. The men armed themselves with sledge-runner pieces and improvised clubs and hurried to the rookery, but they were too late. Only a few weaker birds turned back and were later killed. The gentoo penguins stayed, lacking the migratory habit.
Chapter 18
What misfortunes struck the camp on the night of April 17-18?
A wave forced under the author's tent about 2 a.m., forcing the camp to move. Two of four clothing bags were carried into the surf and lost. The big eight-man tent was blown to pieces in the early morning. A southerly gale blew on April 18 with drifting snow, and the men turned the Dudley Docker upside down, wedging it with boulders, to shelter those left without a tent.
Chapter 18
How did the men react to the discomforts, and what did the author think of it?
Some men showed signs of demoralization, were disinclined to leave their tents, and complained of frozen gloves and helmets, saying they wanted dry clothes and could not work. The author calls this the proverbial carelessness of the sailor and says the proper thing is to keep such articles thawed inside one's shirt at night. He argues all hands would benefit from rest and recuperation.
Chapter 18
CHAPTER IX (part 1)4 cards
Why did Shackleton choose South Georgia over the Falkland Islands as the boat journey's goal?
Shackleton rejected Port Stanley in the Falklands, 540 miles away, because he doubted a frail, weakened boat could beat up against the prevailing north-westerly winds. South Georgia was over 800 miles away but lay in the west-wind belt, and he could count on finding whalers at its east-coast stations. He calculated a relief party might return within a month if ice stayed clear and the boat survived.
Chapter 19
How did Shackleton allocate the island's food and fuel after surveying supplies?
Stores showed full rations for the whole party for five weeks; these could stretch to three months on reduced allowance and might be supplemented by seals and sea-elephants, though Shackleton dared not rely on that since the animals seemed to have deserted the beach. With three seals and two and a half skins for blubber fuel, he decided the party must be limited to one hot meal a day.
Chapter 19
How did the carpenter modify the James Caird for the voyage?
The carpenter, McNeish, fitted the Stancomb Wills's mast fore and aft inside the James Caird as a hog-back to strengthen the keel against buckling in heavy seas. Lacking wood for a deck, he used sledge-runners and box-lids to build a framework from forecastle to a well, then covered it with canvas thawed over the blubber-stove. Shackleton thought it resembled stage scenery, but it served well.
Chapter 19
Why did Shackleton refuse to take Blackborrow on the boat journey?
Blackborrow's feet had been frost-bitten during the boat journey, and the doctors feared his toes would need amputation unless animation returned soon. McIlroy and Macklin suggested taking him so he might get shelter and warmth quickly, but Shackleton vetoed the idea, doubting a sick man lying helpless in the boat's bottom could survive the heavy weather they were sure to meet.
Chapter 19
CHAPTER IX (part 2)4 cards
Why did Shackleton run north for the first two days of the voyage?
Shackleton decided to run north for at least two days while the wind held, hoping to reach warmer weather before turning east toward South Georgia. He also wanted to avoid lines of pack ice that might extend beyond the main body. He noted the higher latitude was needed for sailing the great circle, but caution about possible ice-streams was required.
Chapter 20
What was the sea-anchor and how did it help the James Caird?
The sea-anchor was a triangular canvas bag fastened to the end of the painter and streamed out from the bows. As the boat drifted to leeward, the drag kept her head to windward, so she took most seas more or less end on. Even so, wave crests often curled over and shipped water, requiring unceasing baling and pumping.
Chapter 20
How did ice accumulation threaten the boat and what was done about it?
Freezing spray coated the boat in ice, reducing buoyancy and making the James Caird lose resiliency so she no longer rose to oncoming seas. The crew threw overboard spare oars frozen to the sides and two wet fur sleeping-bags weighing about 40 lbs each, and chipped and scraped ice carefully to avoid cutting the frozen canvas decking.
Chapter 20
What was the daily meal routine aboard the James Caird?
Breakfast at 8 a.m. was a pannikin of hot hoosh from Bovril sledging ration, two biscuits, and sugar lumps. Lunch at 1 p.m. and tea at 5 p.m. both comprised raw Bovril sledging ration and hot milk. A hot drink, generally milk, came during the night. Shackleton called the meals the bright beacons of those cold, stormy days.
Chapter 20
CHAPTER IX (part 3)4 cards
Why did the crew refrain from shooting birds for food during the boat voyage?
Although they faced a shortage of food, the men were unwilling to destroy the Cape pigeons, their little neighbours, even for fresh meat. They might have shot an albatross, but the wandering king of the ocean stirred in them something of the feeling that inspired, too late, the Ancient Mariner. So the gun stayed among the stores and sleeping-bags, and the birds followed them unmolested.
Chapter 21
What water ration did Shackleton impose, and why?
With water running very low and the supply dependent on what they had brought from Elephant Island, Shackleton cut the daily allowance to half a pint per man. He dared not increase it, since an unfavourable wind might drive them away from the island and lengthen the voyage by many days. He had to be firm in refusing requests to anticipate the morrow's allowance.
Chapter 21
What happened when the enormous wave struck the James Caird at midnight?
Shackleton, at the tiller, first took the white crest for a rift in the clouds, then realized it was a gigantic wave such as he had not met in twenty-six years at sea. He shouted to the men to hold on. The boat was lifted and flung forward, half-filled with water, but survived. They baled for about ten minutes before she floated again, and only by 3 a.m. did they light the stove for hot drinks.
Chapter 21
How did the wind shift just after 6 p.m. change the crew's situation?
The boat was being driven onto a dead lee shore in a hurricane, and most of the men felt the end was near. Then the wind suddenly shifted, freeing them to make an offing. Soon after the gale eased, the pin locking the mast to the thwart fell out; had it gone during the hurricane, the mast would have snapped like a carrot. Shackleton marvelled at the thin line dividing success from failure.
Chapter 21
CHAPTER IX (part 4)4 cards
Why did the party need to sail to the head of King Haakon Bay rather than go inland from the cove?
The northern and southern sides of the sound were steep mountain-ranges with glaciers furrowing their flanks, outlets of the interior ice-sheet. These glaciers and precipitous slopes barred the way inland from the cove, so the party had to sail to the head of the sound, where glimpses of snow-slopes had raised hope that an overland journey could begin.
Chapter 22
What did the party use for fuel and food at the cave, and what fuel problem worried Shackleton?
They burned wood from the James Caird's topsides and later a broken spar found at the foot of a cliff. Young albatrosses supplied food; four birds went into the pot for six men with a Bovril ration for thickening. Shackleton worried about the shortage of petroleum for the cooker and wanted to keep some for the overland journey, since no seal or sea-elephant was visible nearby.
Chapter 22
How was the James Caird's lost rudder recovered?
The rudder had been knocked off when the boat bumped heavily astern during the landing on the night of May 10, and a search of the beach and rocks failed to find it. On May 13, after the ice cleared, it came bobbing back into the cove on wind and wave; the men waited on shore with oars and seized it, which Shackleton calls a remarkable salvage.
Chapter 22
What did Worsley discover about his sleeping-bag, and why had he not noticed sooner?
A big hole had been burned in the bottom of Worsley's reindeer sleeping-bag. Tussock-grass on the cave floor had smouldered outwards from the fire and burned the bag beneath his feet. He had been awakened by a burning sensation but thought it was due to frostbite, since the party were superficially frostbitten about the feet, causing painful burning while sensation was lost in the skin.
Chapter 22
CHAPTER IX (part 5)4 cards
What did Shackleton, Worsley, and Crean decide to leave behind for the overland journey, and why?
After hauling the heavy, cumbrous sledge to the snouted glacier, Shackleton realized it would be too heavy for three men in the interior. The party decided to leave the sleeping-bags behind and travel in very light marching order, taking three days' sledging ration and biscuit per man, the Primus lamp, cooker, carpenter's adze as ice-axe, and a fifty-foot alpine rope.
Chapter 23
What did the party mistake for a frozen lake, and how was the error discovered?
Descending from about 3,000 ft., the men thought they saw a huge frozen lake ahead and chose to cross it. As daylight brightened and fog lifted, they saw it stretched to the horizon and realized it was the open sea on the east coast. A slight pulsation at the shore showed the sea was not even frozen; bad light had deceived them.
Chapter 23
What did Shackleton observe about the interior of South Georgia from the ridge?
From about 2,500 ft. in bright moonlight, Shackleton saw that the interior was broken tremendously, with high peaks, impassable cliffs, steep snow-slopes, sharply descending glaciers, and stretches of snow-plain overlying the interior ice-sheet. He noted no man had ever penetrated a mile from the coast at any point, and whalers regarded the country as inaccessible.
Chapter 23
Why did McCarthy stay behind at Peggotty Camp when the three men set out?
Vincent was still in the same condition and could not march, and McNeish was pretty well broken up. The two men were not capable of managing for themselves, so McCarthy had to stay to look after them. Shackleton noted McCarthy might have a difficult task if the three failed to reach the whaling station.
Chapter 23
CHAPTER X4 cards
Why did Shackleton turn back after reaching the razor-back ridge the first time?
From the crest he looked down a sheer precipice to crumpled ice 1500 ft. below and found no way down. The east was a rising snow upland, the north fell in glaciers to the bays, and the south was broken by outfalls from the inland ice-sheet. He retraced the slope that had taken three hours to climb, reaching the bottom in an hour.
Chapter 24
How did the moon help the party during the night march?
About 8 p.m. the full moon rose ahead of them and made a silver pathway for their feet. They advanced in safety along it, with the shadows cast by crevasse edges showing black on either side. Shackleton says the friendly moon seemed to pilot their weary feet, and that in bright daylight they would have followed the course it traced.
Chapter 24
Why did Shackleton wake his companions after only five minutes of rest?
Sheltering under a rock at 5 a.m., all three were exhausted, and within a minute Worsley and Crean were asleep. Shackleton knew that sleep under such conditions merges into death, so he shook them awake after five minutes, told them they had slept half an hour, and gave the word for a fresh start.
Chapter 24
What did the steam-whistle at 7 a.m. mean to the men?
Shackleton first thought he heard a steam-whistle at 6.30 a.m., knowing the whaling-station men were called from their beds about then. At seven o'clock it came clearly on the wind, the first sound from outside human agency since they left Stromness Bay in December 1914. It told them men were near and ships were ready for the rescue of the men on Elephant Island.
Chapter 24
CHAPTER XI4 cards
Why did Shackleton turn the Southern Sky back from Elephant Island?
The Southern Sky was a steel-built steamer, strong against waves but unable to endure blows from masses of ice. When pack ice blocked the way about 70 miles from Elephant Island, Shackleton turned north-west. The ship carried coal for only ten days and had been out six, so he sailed to the Falklands to seek a more suitable vessel and make a second attempt.
Chapter 25
What ship did Uruguay offer Shackleton, and why did that attempt fail?
The Uruguayan Government offered the trawler Instituto de Pesca No. 1, equipped with coal, provisions and clothing, which reached Port Stanley on June 10. Within twenty miles of Elephant Island an impenetrable crescent of pack ice stopped her, and the trawler began to grind in the floes. With only three days' coal left, Shackleton ordered the return.
Chapter 25
How did the British Association of Magellanes help the rescue effort?
At Punta Arenas the British Association of Magellanes welcomed Shackleton, Worsley and Crean. Mr. Allan McDonald worked day and night, and mainly through him the members raised £1500 among themselves within three days, chartered the forty-year-old oak schooner Emma and equipped her for the rescue. The Chilian Government also lent the steamer Yelcho to tow her part of the way.
Chapter 25
What news of the Aurora did Shackleton hear at South Georgia, and why did it matter?
Mr. Sorlle told Shackleton only that the Aurora had broken away from winter quarters in McMurdo Sound, drifted to New Zealand, and that there was no news of the shore party. Details were indefinite until Shackleton reached the Falkland Islands. The rumour made it more urgent to bring out the Weddell Sea party quickly so he could turn to the Ross Sea side.
Chapter 25
CHAPTER XII4 cards
What was the first priority for the men left on Elephant Island, and why?
Shelter came before food. Semi-starvation from the ice-floe drift, exposure in the boats, and harsh weather after landing had weakened many men; Rickenson collapsed from heart-failure and Blackborrow and Hudson could not move. All were frost-bitten and their clothes had been worn for six months, so Wild hastened excavation of the ice-cave and then had stone walls built.
Chapter 26
How was the hut on Elephant Island constructed from the two boats?
Two stone walls four feet high and nineteen feet apart were built between boulders, with Penguin Hill giving protection to the north. The two boats were laid upside down side by side on the walls, chocked and lashed to the rocks. Wood was laid keel to keel, a torn tent spread over it, and Marston nailed tent-cloth around the gunwales as a valance, secured with spars and oars.
Chapter 26
What problems did the stove and smoke cause inside the hut, and how were they fixed?
Cooking was first done outside, but during a severe blizzard a meal was cooked inside; with no escape for the pungent blubber-smoke, some men suffered smoke-blindness similar to snow-blindness and needed medical attention. Kerr made a chimney from the tin lining of a biscuit-case, passed through a tin grummet in the canvas roof between the keels, ending the smoke nuisance.
Chapter 26
How did the men get light and water problems solved in the hut?
The hut was dark from blubber-soot and snowdrifts. Wild sewed the glass lid of a chronometer box into the canvas as a window, and three more windows were added using celluloid panels from a photograph case. When mild weather flooded the floor, they baled over 100, then 150, then 160 gallons of water before digging a channel through one wall to the sea.
Chapter 26
CHAPTER XIII (part 1)4 cards
What was the main object of the Ross Sea party, and did they achieve it?
The main object was to lay a depot of food and fuel-oil on the Great Ice Barrier for the transcontinental party expected from the Weddell Sea. The author states that despite extraordinary difficulties, including the Aurora breaking out of winter quarters before sufficient stores were landed, Mackintosh's party achieved this object and laid the depot at the spot he had indicated.
Chapter 27
What instructions did Shackleton give Mackintosh regarding depot-laying?
Shackleton directed Mackintosh to place a depot of food and fuel-oil at lat. 80° S. in 1914–15, with cairns and flags to guide a sledging party approaching from the Pole, and to place depots farther south in the 1915–16 season. Mackintosh was also to base near McMurdo Sound and land stores and equipment.
Chapter 27
Why did the Cape Crozier emperor penguin egg party fail to land hut and stores?
A boat party including Stenhouse and Joyce searched for a landing-place but found no spot where the hut and stores could be depotted. They climbed an ice-foot and walked along the cliffs but saw no rookery or suitable place. Stenhouse concluded a hut would have to be built at winter quarters instead, meaning extra sledging.
Chapter 27
What losses did the early depot parties suffer, and why?
The men were fresh from shipboard and not in the best training, and the dogs were in poor condition and had not learned to work as teams after being worked so soon after arrival. The result was the loss of many dogs, which the author calls a serious matter in the following season.
Chapter 27
CHAPTER XIII (part 2)4 cards
Why did Mackintosh reorganize the sledge parties after the February 10 blizzard?
One dog had died on the 9th and several others were no longer worth much for pulling. Mackintosh decided to take the best dogs from both teams and continue with Joyce and Wild, while Smith, Jack, and Gaze returned to Hut Point with the remaining dogs. He had eight dogs and Smith had five. Sledge-loads were adjusted so proper supplies would be available for the depots, and a depot of oil and fuel was laid and marked by a cairn with a ten-foot bamboo pole.
Chapter 28
What did Mackintosh hope to find at latitude 80° S, and what did he find instead?
Mackintosh had hoped to find a depot laid in that neighbourhood by Captain Scott, but no trace of it was seen. The surface had been very rough that afternoon, so the depot the party laid there was named Rocky Mountain Depot. Stores were placed on a substantial cairn, with smaller cairns built at right angles as a guide to the overland party, and the main cairn was built eight feet high with a bamboo pole and flag on top.
Chapter 28
How did the dogs' condition deteriorate on the return march, and what happened to them?
The dogs reached the limit of their endurance. Three fell out on the march after the party covered nine and a half miles with a sail, and the remaining four collapsed on March 2. Mackintosh describes them lying down in the tracks and dying a painless death, curled in the snow. Only Pinkey remained, a non-puller who was given plenty of biscuit and nursed. The men then pulled the sledge themselves with a sail set.
Chapter 28
Why did Mackintosh move the Bluff depot stores, and what risk did the retrieval involve?
His instructions were that the Bluff depot should be laid on the line where Bluff Peak aligned with Mount Discovery. On the outward journey thick weather prevented picking up the landmarks, so the depot was placed north of the line. Mackintosh sighted the flag about four miles away and went with Joyce and Wild to move the stores, leaving tent and bags behind on a promise of fine weather. Darkness fell and they travelled by starlight for four and a half hours before sighting the tent.
Chapter 28
CHAPTER XIII (part 3)4 cards
Why did Mackintosh's party discard their ski during the march?
The men discarded the ski after two hours of sastrugi and made better progress without them, though they still had many falls because slopes and irregularities were impossible to distinguish on the grey, shadowless snow surface. Travelling in finneskoe made the sledge go better but was less comfortable than ski. They covered over nine and a half miles that day and ten miles on March 18, one of the best marches of the journey.
Chapter 29
How did the party finally get food after running low on rations?
Food had been cut to close upon half-rations, and on March 24 the men started with only biscuit-crumbs, all suffering frost-bites. After about two hours Joyce spotted a flag, and they reached cases of provisions at a depot. They brought down pemmican, thickened it with oatmeal, added sugar, and ate mug after mug until full, feeling like new beings. A note from Spencer-Smith and Richards reported the other parties back at the Hut.
Chapter 29
What frost-bite injuries did Wild suffer, and how was his ear treated?
Wild was a mass of bites: his nose, cheeks, and neck were all frost-bitten, and his ear was the last piece of his face left whole. At the depot his ear looked pale green; Mackintosh quickly put his palm to it and brought it round. Wild then put his fingers over the lighted Primus to restore circulation, a terrible thing to do, and was in agony as a result.
Chapter 29
What does the chapter say about the leaders' use of available literature?
The chapter states it is to be regretted that, though a good deal of literature was available, especially on this particular district, the leaders of the various parties had not taken advantage of it to supplement their knowledge. Joyce and Mackintosh had previous Antarctic experience, but it was open to all to have carefully studied the detailed instructions published in the books of the three last Expeditions in that quarter.
Chapter 29
CHAPTER XIV4 cards
Why did the Aurora winter at Cape Evans rather than farther up McMurdo Sound?
Mackintosh explains that the Aurora could have found safe winter quarters farther up McMurdo Sound toward Hut Point, but would have risked being frozen in over the following summer. Shackleton had given Mackintosh instructions before he went south that this danger must be avoided, so the bay near Scott's hut was chosen instead.
Chapter 30
What happened to the Aurora on the night of May 6–7, 1915?
Stevens reports that at 11 p.m. on May 6 the wind was south backing south-east at forty miles per hour, with the ship still in place. By 3 a.m. on May 7 the wind had not greatly increased, yet ice and ship had gone. The shore end of the cable was bent twice sharply and the wires were loose; the vessel was not seen to go, so damage could not be determined.
Chapter 30
How did the shore party ration food after the ship disappeared?
Stevens made as accurate an inventory as possible of all stores ashore and regulated consumption so the food would last ten men for not less than one hundred weeks. Coal and meat were already used with the utmost economy. He noted that neither meat nor coal could be made to last two years, so an adequate supply of meat and blubber would have to be secured the following summer.
Chapter 30
What duties and routine did Mackintosh assign at Cape Evans?
Stevens was senior officer ashore in charge of the scientific staff, Joyce handled equipment and improvised clothes from canvas, Wild assisted him, Richards kept the meteorological log with Jack as assistant, Hayward supplied blubber with Gaze, Spencer-Smith handled photography, and Cope was medical officer. Breakfast was at 7 a.m. for four men, others at 9 a.m., with work from 2 to 5 p.m. and early nights to economize fuel and light.
Chapter 30
CHAPTER XV (part 1)4 cards
Why does Shackleton call using the dogs on the 1915 journey a mistake?
The author argues it was a mistake to use the dogs, untrained and soft from shipboard inactivity, on the comparatively short journey right after landing in 1915. The result was the loss of nearly all the dogs before the longer, more important journeys of 1915–16. Despite this, the men sledged almost continuously for six months and still placed the depots where expected.
Chapter 31
What did Mackintosh intend regarding the Minna Bluff depot and Mount Hope?
Mackintosh intended to form a large depot off Minna Bluff, seventy miles out from Hut Point, which required several trips with heavy loads. He would then use the Bluff depot as a base for the journey to Mount Hope at the foot of the Beardmore Glacier, where the final depot was to be laid.
Chapter 31
Why did Joyce send three men back from the 80° S depot in January 1916?
A defect appeared in one of Joyce's two Primus lamps, and a party could not travel without means to melt snow and prepare hot food. Fearing a faulty lamp past 80° S might force the whole party back at 81° S, Joyce sent Cope, Gaze, and Jack back with the defective lamp and a light load. They reached Cape Evans on January 16 without dogs.
Chapter 31
What did Joyce leave at the 81° S depot and for whom?
At lat. 81° S the party built a large cairn for the depot and left three weeks' rations for the ordinary three-man sledging unit. This quantity would provide five days' rations for twelve men, half for the overland party and half for the depot party on its return journey.
Chapter 31
CHAPTER XV (part 2)4 cards
What did Joyce's relief party do when blizzards and dwindling supplies threatened the invalids?
Joyce, Richards, and Hayward left Wild in charge of Mackintosh and Spencer-Smith in camp from February 24 and pushed on to the Bluff depot with a nearly empty sledge. The chapter states this decision was fully justified, since attempting the journey with two helpless men might have meant losing the whole party.
Chapter 32
How did the party improvise light and heat after the kerosene ran out?
Richards improvised a lamp by pouring spirit intended for priming the oil-lamp into a mug, lighting it, and holding another mug over it. It took half an hour to heat a mug of melted snow this way. The men also had plenty of tea but no fuel to cook it with.
Chapter 32
What condition were the relief party members in, and what did they find at the Bluff depot?
Joyce, Richards, and Hayward all showed symptoms of scurvy in varying degrees, with weak legs and swollen gums. They reached the depot on February 26, finding it dilapidated with cases scattered about, and Joyce wrote that no weaker party had ever arrived at any depot, north or south.
Chapter 32
Why did the party decide to move on February 23 despite the blizzard?
Joyce recorded that with hardly any food left except tea and sugar, he, Richards, and Hayward decided after a long talk to get under way the next day or else share the fate of Captain Scott and his party. They gave the dogs their last food, since much depended on them.
Chapter 32
CHAPTER XV (part 3)4 cards
What did the Skipper decide to do on March 7, and why?
After a consultation, the Skipper decided to stay behind in a tent with three weeks' provisions while the others pushed on with Smith and Hayward. The party was only about thirty miles from assistance but could get none, and the surface was sticky and progress very slow. The decision came as the invalids made travel extremely difficult.
Chapter 33
How did Spencer-Smith die, and how was he buried?
Spencer-Smith died on the night of March 8-9 after about forty days of being dragged on a sledge in pain, never complaining. The temperature was down to -29 degrees. He was buried in his sleeping-bag at 9 o'clock at a recorded position, with a cross of bamboos, a mound and a cairn bearing particulars.
Chapter 33
What did the party find at Hut Point on March 11, and what did they conclude about the ship?
They arrived at Hut Point about 3 o'clock, finding the hut half-full of snow from an open window and drift. They got it shipshape, lit the fire, cooked dried vegetables, and killed seals for fresh meat. As there was no news of the ship and she could not be seen, they surmised she had gone down with all hands.
Chapter 33
What totals does Richards give for the sledging journeys, and what equipment problems does he note?
Richards says the journeys between September 1 and March 18, 160 days, totalled 1561 miles, with the main Hut Point to Mount Hope return trip at 830 miles. He notes the equipment was old at the start and told severely later: three Primus lamps gave out, the old tent had rents several feet long, and finneskoe were in pieces, costing time in repairs.
Chapter 33
CHAPTER XV (part 4)4 cards
Why did Mackintosh and Hayward leave on foot without the sledge party?
The surface was too sticky for a sledge to travel the sea-ice distance, so Mackintosh and Hayward went alone, intending the others to follow with the sledge and equipment once conditions improved. They carried no sleeping-bags and only a small meal of chocolate and seal meat. Joyce warned them not to go, as the ice was still thin and the weather uncertain.
Chapter 34
When and how was the party's loss of Mackintosh and Hayward confirmed?
Only on July 15, 1916, when the Hut Point party reached Cape Evans and learned the two men had not arrived. Those at the hut, aware of the conditions in which the men were last seen, were convinced they had perished in the blizzard, being unprovided with equipment of any sort. The conclusion was accepted reluctantly.
Chapter 34
What searches did Joyce's party make for the missing men?
In August 1916 Wild and Joyce searched Inaccessible Island. In September parties searched the shore near Turk's Head. From December 31, 1916, Joyce, Wild and Gaze searched from Hut Point along the cliffs, around Glacier Tongue and Tent Island, but crevasses and heavy pressure blocked the glacier slopes. No trace of the bodies was found.
Chapter 34
How did the Cape Evans party cope with short supplies during the winter?
During June and July seals became scarce and the blubber supply ran short. Meals were little but seal meat and porridge. The small salt stock was exhausted, but the men obtained two and a half pounds by boiling down snow from the bottom layer next to the sea-ice. The dogs recovered condition rapidly and hunted seals on their own account.
Chapter 34
CHAPTER XVI (part 1)3 cards
Why did the Aurora fail to winter at Cape Evans?
Stenhouse had moored the Aurora with steel hawsers to shore anchors at Cape Evans, but ice movement put heavy strain on the moorings and several wires parted. On the evening of May 6, 1915, the ice parted from the shore and all moorings broke, so the ship drifted out into McMurdo Sound, ending the attempt to winter there.
Chapter 35
What did Stenhouse identify as the main difficulties while seeking winter quarters?
Stenhouse described being frustrated in every move: the ice kept breaking away in small floes, the ship broke from fast ice in blizzards, and they dodged floes and growlers in heavy drift with unreliable compasses and a short-handed crew. Some stretches of coast were off-limits, and no secure anchorage could be found, so steam had to be kept handy.
Chapter 35
What was the Aurora's position and condition about a week after breaking drift?
By May 14 the ship was approximately forty-five miles north and thirty-four miles west of Cape Evans, most of that distance covered in the first two days before movement nearly stopped. Both anchors had broken during heaving-in, leaving only one small kedge-anchor aboard, and the ship was held fast in the pack with no immediate water supply.
Chapter 35
CHAPTER XVI (part 2)4 cards
What was Shackleton's plan if the ship was released from the ice after September?
Shackleton wrote that if the ship was released from the ice after September, they must endeavour to reach Cape Evans before going north to bunker, since they did not have enough coal to hang about the Sound for many days. Earlier plans included pushing south to the Barrier, landing a party about two miles east of Cape Crozier, and laying out a depot at the Beardmore for Shackleton.
Chapter 36
What did Shackleton observe and do on June 22, the winter solstice?
On June 22 the sun reached the limit of its northern declination and would start to come south. Shackleton observed the day as a holiday, and in the evening had the hands aft to drink to the health of the King and the Expedition. He noted all hands were happy but missed the others at Cape Evans, and prayed they would soon be clear of their prison.
Chapter 36
What happened to the ship during the heavy ice pressure of July 21?
On July 21 lanes opened and the ship swung athwart a lane; floes on the port side pushed her stern round. Later, new ice in the lanes cracked and opened, floes closed in and nipped the ship fore and aft, and the rudder was bent over to starboard and smashed — solid oak and iron went like matchwood. At 10 p.m. an extra hard nip made the ship visibly hog.
Chapter 36
Why did wireless messages from the Aurora fail to reach Cape Evans or other stations?
Hooke reported non-success in establishing communication, suggesting the proximity of the Magnetic Pole and Aurora Australis might affect things, though radiation was good for normal conditions. There was leakage of current from the aerial during sending, apparently due to induction from snow on the insulators, and a condenser jar broke. Shackleton later learned none of the messages were received by any station.
Chapter 36
CHAPTER XVI (part 3)3 cards
What damage did the Aurora's rudder sustain, and how was it repaired?
The rudder blade, solid oak sheathed with three-quarter-inch iron plating, was undamaged except for broken pintles; the twisted portion lay in the rudder trunk. The carpenter built a jury-rudder and repaired the lower end of the rudder trunk where the rudder had burst into the stern timbers. Stenhouse noted they were lucky to have the chance to fix these minor damages, which might prove serious in a seaway.
Chapter 37
What medical cases did Stenhouse record in September, and how did he treat them?
Larkman had frostbite on the great and second toes of his left foot, which he had ignored until gangrene set in. Mugridge had an intermittent rash with red, inflamed skin and large, short-lived blisters; Stenhouse, unsure what it was, called it pemphigus based on the closest description in a Materia Medica, and treated him with tonics and massage.
Chapter 37
What did the crew see on November 23-24 regarding Cape Hudson?
On November 23 land was sighted bearing south 60 degrees west, appearing to be Cape Hudson, a high bold headland with low undulating land stretching south-south-east. On November 24, despite clear skies, no land could be seen; Stenhouse called it 'Cape Flyaway,' noting all hands had seen and sketched it. A low fringe of land later appeared but did not resemble it. He remarked, 'No wonder Wilkes reported land.'
Chapter 37
CHAPTER XVI (part 4)3 cards
What makeshift repairs did the carpenter make to the Aurora's leaking hull?
The carpenter cut away part of the lining and filled the space between the timbers with Stockholm tar, cement, and oakum. He could not reach the actual leak, so the repair was only a makeshift that made a little difference. The master remained anxious about the propeller, noting the pack was a dangerous place and it seemed miraculous the old ship still floated.
Chapter 38
How did Stenhouse steer the Aurora after she lost her rudder?
He rigged the spanker gaff over the stern as a temporary rudder, later shipping a preventer jury-rudder with steering pennants to drag through the water. Without a working rudder, the ship's head had to be pointed between floes using ice-anchors and warps, or by mooring to a floe and steaming round it. The jury-rudder needed constant nursing.
Chapter 38
When and where did the Aurora finally clear the last belt of pack ice?
At 2 p.m. on March 14 the Aurora cleared the last belt of pack in latitude 62° 27.5' S., longitude 157° 32' E. Stenhouse recorded that they 'spliced the main brace' and blew three blasts of farewell to the pack with the whistle. The ship then struggled north, reaching Port Chalmers on April 3 after being towed by the tug Plucky.
Chapter 38
CHAPTER XVII4 cards
Who commanded the Aurora for the relief voyage, and who joined him?
Captain John K. Davis, a veteran of Shackleton's 1907–1909 expedition and former commander of Mawson's ship, was placed in command of the repaired Aurora by the Governments. Shackleton agreed the existing arrangements should stand and sailed with Davis from Port Chalmers on December 20, 1916, signing on at a salary of 1s. a month to take charge of any shore operations.
Chapter 39
How many of the ten Ross Sea party members survived, and who died?
Of the ten members left behind when the Aurora broke away on May 6, 1915, seven survived: A. Stevens, E. Joyce, H. E. Wild, J. L. Cope, R. W. Richards, A. K. Jack and I. O. Gaze. They were all well, though showing traces of their ordeal. They reported the deaths of Mackintosh, Spencer-Smith and Hayward.
Chapter 39
What did Shackleton conclude about Mackintosh and Hayward after searching?
Shackleton searched north of Glacier Tongue, the Razorbacks, and the Butler Point depot area without finding any trace. He concluded there was no doubt the two men met their deaths when the thin ice broke during the blizzard of May 8, 1916. Wild and Jack erected a cross at the hut to the three men lost in the Expedition's service.
Chapter 39
What route did the Aurora take north after the relief, and when did she reach Wellington?
Davis took the ship north on January 17, but unfavourable ice and pack blocked the way, so they stood toward the western coast past Dunlop Island to Granite Harbour without seeing any mark or depot. They reached the main pack near Cape Adare on January 22, passed between pack and land after a north-west gale on January 28, crossed the Antarctic Circle on the last day of the month, and berthed at Wellington on February 9.
Chapter 39
XVIII. THE FINAL PHASE4 cards
What was the main object of Antarctic journeying remaining after Amundsen reached the South Pole?
The author states that after Amundsen's conquest of the South Pole, narrowly ahead of Scott's British Expedition, there remained but one great main object of Antarctic journeyings: the crossing of the South Polar continent from sea to sea. Shackleton had previously turned back within ninety-seven miles of the Pole on the Nimrod Expedition, and he resolved that the first crossing of the last continent should be achieved by a British Expedition.
Chapter 40
According to the programme, how many men would the Endurance land and how would they be divided?
The programme states that fourteen men would be landed by the Endurance on the Weddell Sea. Six would set out on the Trans-continental journey led by Shackleton, three would go westward toward Graham Land, three eastward toward Enderby Land, and two would remain at the base. The Aurora would land six men at the Ross Sea base to lay depots and march south to assist the Trans-continental party.
Chapter 40
What scientific questions would the Trans-continental journey investigate, per the programme?
The programme says the roughly 1800-mile journey would cross unknown ground from the Weddell Sea to the Pole. It would determine whether the great Victoria chain of mountains extends across the continent and links with the Andes, and whether the polar plateau dips gradually toward the Weddell Sea. Continuous magnetic observations would be taken toward the Magnetic Pole, meteorological conditions noted, and ice formations and mountains studied by glaciologist and geologist.
Chapter 40
What financial difficulty did Shackleton face in March 1914?
Shackleton says he began preparations in mid-1913 and announced the Expedition publicly on January 13, 1914, after receiving promised financial support. In March the promised financial help did not materialize, leaving him with a contracted ship, stores, and engaged staff but no funds to meet those liabilities. He then appealed for help and met with generous response from all sides.
Chapter 40
CHAPTER XVIII4 cards
Why does Shackleton say the Expedition failed in its main object?
Shackleton attributes the failure to overwhelming natural obstacles, especially unprecedentedly severe summer conditions on the Weddell Sea side, rather than to any neglect or lack of organization. He argues the Expedition was nonetheless successful in other respects, citing important scientific work, particularly meteorological observations with an economic bearing and hydrographical work clarifying the Weddell Sea.
Chapter 41
What casualties does Shackleton report for the Expedition as a unit?
Of fifty-six men who left, three died in the Antarctic, three were killed in action, and five were wounded, which Shackleton calls fairly high casualties. He names McCarthy, killed at his gun in the Channel; Cheetham, drowned when his vessel was torpedoed; and Ernest Wild, killed while minesweeping in the Mediterranean.
Chapter 41
How did the scientists' work change once the ship was trapped in ice?
Wordie writes that when it was known the ship could not escape the ice in the 1914–1915 season, the scientists were freed as far as possible from ship's duties and devoted themselves almost entirely to their own spheres. Meteorological instruments intended for the land base were set up on board, and the geologist suppressed all thought of rocks, turning to oceanographical work.
Chapter 41
What does Wordie say about sea-ice nomenclature and its authorities?
Wordie notes the terms used on the Endurance did not always agree with Markham's and Mill's glossary in The Antarctic Manual (1901). He says the party followed terminology used by members whose experience dated to Scott's first voyage. He gives preference to words actually used by Polar seamen, following Scoresby's 1820 account as closely as possible.
Chapter 41
C. R. Markham and H. R. Mill in “The Antarctic Manual,”… (part 1)3 cards
According to the chapter, what is the difference between 'young ice' and 'bay-ice' terminology?
Young ice is applied to all unhummocked ice up to about a foot thick, cracking easily due to fibrous or platy structure. In the Arctic this form has customarily been called bay-ice, but in the Antarctic bay-ice is wrongly used for land-floes and has been so misapplied for fifteen years. The author suggests bay-ice should possibly be dropped altogether, since even in the Arctic its meaning is not rigid.
Chapter 42
How does the chapter define 'field' versus 'floe'?
A field is a sheet of ice of such extent that its limits cannot be seen from the masthead. A floe is an area of ice, level or hummocked, whose limits are within sight, including all sizes between brash and fields. Light floes are one to two feet thick, anything thinner being young ice; those over two feet are heavy floes, generally hummocked and snow-covered in the Antarctic.
Chapter 42
What did South Orkney observations suggest about Weddell Sea winters and Argentine weather?
The chapter states that, as a result of observations and researches at the South Orkneys, a cold winter in the Weddell Sea was found to be a sure precursor of a drought over the maize and cereal bearing area of Argentina three and a half years later. The author argues this advance knowledge is enormously valuable to farmers, and notes England had some three hundred million pounds invested in Argentine interests.
Chapter 42
C. R. Markham and H. R. Mill in “The Antarctic Manual,”… (part 2)2 cards
Why did the theodolite prove more useful than the sextant in drifting pack-ice?
In really thick pack-ice the floes are steady, so the theodolite can be set up and levelled as on dry land. Its altitude is referred to the instrument's spirit-level and is independent of any apparent horizon. The sextant measures the angle to the visible horizon, which in very cold weather may be miraged up several minutes, an error practically impossible to correct.
Chapter 43
How were the Endurance's chronometers checked during the drift, and how large was the error found?
Occultations—eclipses of a star by the moon—were observed during the winter of 1915, since no check on known land was possible for about fifteen months. On June 24, 1915, four occultations revealed an error in longitude of a whole degree. Later observations gave reliable rates, and the longitude deduced on March 23, 1916, was only about 10′ of arc in error.
Chapter 43
C. R. Markham and H. R. Mill in “The Antarctic Manual,”… (part 3)4 cards
What did stomach examinations of penguins and seals in the Weddell Sea reveal about their food?
Emperor penguins, hundreds of which were examined, invariably contained Cephalopod "beaks," and large, partly digested squids were often found in Weddell seals. This showed an abundance of squid-type food in the Weddell Sea, supporting the point that toothed whales such as sperms and bottlenoses, known to live on squids, had a food supply there.
Chapter 44
Why does the chapter argue whales migrate north, and what evidence supports this?
The author argues the northern migration is for breeding rather than food, since a food-seeking explanation seems improbable. Whales appear to select more temperate regions to bring forth young. Foetal records strengthen this: pairing occurs in northern areas, the foetus is carried during the southern migration, and calves are born in more congenial waters north of the sub-Antarctic area.
Chapter 44
How does the chapter distinguish rorquals from right whales?
A dorsal fin is present in the rorquals but absent in right whales. Along with other characters, notably the size of the animal, this serves as a ready mark of identification, though it is occasionally confusing owing to variation in shape among some species. The chapter also notes whalebone whales have muscular tongues that press water through the whalebone lamellae, filtering out small food organisms.
Chapter 44
What did the chapter conclude about the state of the South Atlantic whaling industry?
The author argues the industry has reached a critical stage, now dependent on large fin and blue whales, with humpbacks rapidly reduced so the total stock appears affected. The vigorous slaughter in sub-Antarctic and sub-tropical areas calls for universal legislation to protect whales from early commercial extinction and preserve a worldwide economic industry. A British Inter-departmental Committee was devising protective legislation.
Chapter 44
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Text used: Project Gutenberg eBook #5199 (Public domain in the United States). Generated from the full text; cards paraphrase the source.
Version: Public domain edition. Retrieved 2026-11-02. Cards reviewed 2026-11-02.
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