As far as the polar dash was concerned, the work of each supporting party was finished as soon as it reached land. Each of these parties, consisting of four men, was entirely independent, having its own provisions and a complete traveling outfit. With the exception of the kitchen box containing the alcohol-stove and cooking-utensils, each sledge was complete. In the event of a mishap and the loss of the cooking-outfit, the division losing it would have to double up with another division.
The number of miles covered in each march was first determined by dead reckoning; that is, by taking the compass course for direction and the mean estimate of Marvin, Bartlett, and myself for distance traveled. At intervals of several days this was verified by observations for latitude, and proved to be satisfactorily approximate to the results obtained by our astronomical observations.
For tractive power I have always used the Eskimo dogs, and believe they are the only motor for polar work. Eight dogs are required to haul the standard load, but with an extra load or for fast traveling I have sometimes used ten or twelve good dogs. The dogs are attached to the sledges fanwise, the king dog of the team taking the lead, and there is no peace among the dogs of each team until it has been definitely settled among themselves which animal is the best or strongest of the lot. The Eskimos make their harnesses of sealskin, but when the dogs are living on short rations they will eat anything made of this material, and to prevent this I have used a special webbing or belting two and a half inches wide. Instead of making the traces of rawhide, as the Eskimos do, I have substituted braided linen sash-cord for it. My dog harnesses were made on the same pattern as the Eskimos’, two loops of belting, through which the dog’s forelegs pass, attached by a cross strip under the throat and another back of the neck. The ends of the loops are brought together over the middle of the dog’s back, and the trace fastened to them, making a flexible harness which will permit a dog to pull to the full extent of his strength without cramping or chafing him. The art of guiding a team of lively Eskimo dogs by the voice and rawhide whip twelve or eighteen feet in length is something which requires long time and great patience to master.
Other explorers, British and Norwegian, have smacked their lips in the pages of their narratives and reveled in their “hoosh” and pemmican stew, even though there were lumps of ice in it. In all my expeditions after the first one, when some members of the party made themselves sick by eating too much pemmican stew, no attempt has been made at cooking or even warming the pemmican ration. It has invariably been eaten like a piece of cake or pie, just as it came out of the tin. In this way much economy of time and fuel has resulted.
Pemmican is the most satisfying food I know of. Many times I have reached camp feeling as if I could eat my own weight, and the one half-pound ration of pemmican has seemed painfully small. But by the time I had finished I would not have gone out of the igloo for the finest spread New York could furnish.
The snow house, or igloo, of the Eskimos has a value and a meaning in the scheme of a serious polar sledge-journey far beyond its superior comfort as compared with a tent.
The igloo and suitable fur clothing permit discarding tent and accessories and sleeping-bags. These items are among the so-called “constants” of a sledge-load, that is, those items which remain the same throughout the journey as distinguished from the food, which is constantly diminishing.
As a matter of fact, tent and sleeping-bags do not remain a “constant” weight, but increase in weight with steadily accumulating frozen moisture. On the British North Pole Expedition of 1875–76 the weight of tent outfit for a sledge-party, and its increase in weight during the journey, are given as follows. (“Voyage to the Polar Sea,” Nares, Vol. 1, page 172.):
| Before Starting | On Return | ||
| Tent | 31 pounds | 14 ounces | 55 pounds |
| Sail | 9 pounds | 1 ounce | 17 pounds |
| Coverlet | 21 pounds | 1 ounce | 48 pounds |
| Lower robe | 18 pounds | 4 ounces | 40 pounds |
| Floor cloth | 11 pounds | 4 ounces | 29 pounds |
| Total | 91 pounds | 8 ounces | 189 pounds |
Sleeping-bags increased in weight from 8 pounds 2 ounces to 17 pounds. That, however, is somewhat beside the main point, which is this: The elimination of tent, accessories, and sleeping-bags means the ability to carry an additional amount of pemmican equal to the weight of tent and bags, and pounds of pemmican mean miles of travel. The definite and vital application is this: Shackleton in 1909 was obliged to stop when within ninety-seven miles of the south pole and return because his food was not sufficient to take him there and back to his ship.