On our heads we had a leather-lined flying-helmet. Should this not afford sufficient warmth, we could draw the anorak’s hood over our heads. In order to have glasses which would be suitable for any possible condition we had taken with us a pair of ordinary spectacles with clear glass. At the side of the pilot’s seat hung a pair of goggles and a pair of sun-glasses; also a mask with which one could cover the greater part of the face. However, as we sat well protected behind the wind-screen, we were never required to use the mask. I might mention in conjunction with all this that we took advantage of the opportunity to discard shaving from the first day.
Round our necks we wore a big woolen scarf, and on our hands a pair of specially made gloves of double pig-skin, with wool both inside and out. Over these we drew a pair of gloves of thin wind-proof material, which went right up to the elbow, where they could be drawn up and tied. Roald Amundsen will have told you all about the footwear, but in conclusion I should like to point out that any one could fly in this kit daily in the most severe cold.
Progress is distressingly slow in this account of mine. To-day is the 3rd of August and up till now I have only written 4,000 words. That is scarcely 1,000 words per day. I shall have to triple my speed and push forward if I am to finish with my task in time.
As I sit and fag over the work of writing, and get irritated over the difficulties which present themselves, I comfort myself by repeating the words of an English admiral: “Good writers are generally rotten officers.”
I see moreover from to-day’s newspapers that they wish me to be a member of a new North Pole expedition next summer. In view of what I am going through at the present moment I almost believe I shall “decline with thanks.”
Spare Parts
Spare parts for the machines and engines presented an important consideration. Spitzbergen lay so far away from the factories which had made the material that we could not have any missing parts sent after us. So, as far as the engines were concerned, we decided to draw up a list of the spare parts which we should most likely need. As an engine is made up of so many different parts the best things to do seemed to me to order one complete reserve engine. We should thereby have the certainty that in every event we should have at hand one reserve part for the complete engine no matter which part should suddenly be required. (By chance we came to need a reserve part which we never had thought about!)
“Rolls-Royce” also made up a list of the parts which they thought we might need more than one of, and thus we got an extraordinarily fine equipment. We had in all engine spare parts to a value of 38,000 kronen. We should not have been able to get this equipment had not the Rolls-Royce people shown us the great consideration of agreeing to take back everything which we had no use for. We were in a position similar to most expeditions, and had great financial difficulties to cope with. I mention this as every one here at home seemed to think that Ellsworth’s gift of 85,000 kronen would suffice for our needs. But that was not the case. The two flying machines together cost $82,000, and on these alone the money was almost all spent. When the expedition’s accounts are toted up I believed that they will show a sum of at least $100,000 in excess of Ellsworth’s gift—and that, even after we had pinched and spared on every side. Against this we can reckon with a certain income from stamps (this cannot at present be estimated), and the expedition will also have an income from newspapers, films, lectures and this book, all of which combined should cover the debt of this necessary $100,000. The essential part of the expenses all came before the start, but any income only accrued some time after our return. The position at Christmas time last year appeared very unpromising, and the outlook seemed hopeless. The till had long been empty. Yet orders must be placed if everything was to be ready in good time, and everything had to be paid in ready cash. Bills streamed in, followed by demands for payment whenever they were not settled at once. But where were we to get the money? It is satisfactory to look back, now that everything has been accomplished, but it was far from pleasant at the time. Our private household bills got very, very old,—so hard-up were we!
Dr. Ræstad, who had the financial management of the undertaking, worked on through these conditions quietly and calmly, and he was lucky in being able to carry through a task which probably no one else could have accomplished. Thanks to him we were able in April this year to have everything collected in Tromsö, ready for our departure for Spitzbergen, so that after looking through our equipment we were able to say, “There isn’t one thing missing.”
Up till now only the returns from the newspapers have come in. We have therefore an alarmingly large overdraft at the bank. As the account is so overdrawn we have still difficulties to face, and must therefore set about the fulfillment of our many obligations. We can now look forward to a time when our income will be sufficient to pay off our overdraft, and leave a balance, which will be used for the realization of Roald Amundsen’s old plans.