Dr Koettlitz, the surgeon, had served in Jackson’s expedition., Dr Edward Wilson, of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, also surgeon, was the vertebrate zoologist. He had quite the keenest intellect of any one on board, and possessed great artistic talent, with a marvellous capacity for work. The special scientific staff consisted of Mr Hodgson, the invertebrate zoologist, Curator of the Plymouth Museum; Mr Ferrar, a very able young geologist, a graduate of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge; and Mr Bernacchi the physicist, who had previously been in the Southern Cross Antarctic expedition.
The Admiralty was liberal as regards volunteers, allowing 22 petty officers, able seamen, and stokers to join, and two marines, all excellent men. Indeed the whole ship’s company exclusive of the officers was naval 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’ pemmican. Extreme care was taken in the examination of the preserved meats, soups, vegetables, and fruits. Dr Collingridge, medical officer for the city of London, appointed 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. h in.) were supplied from this source, as well as nine 9 ft. sledges of Nansen’s pattern with broad ski runners, five of 7½ ft., and five iron shod and fastened to be used for work in winter quarters[205].
Scott thought that it might be useful to have a captive balloon, whence to reconnoitre and obtain more extensive views, and the idea was strongly supported by Sir Joseph Hooker. Accordingly the necessary gear was provided, and an officer and two men went to Aldershot for instruction. The balloon was of the army pattern, and the gas was taken in sixty heavy tubes which were stowed on deck. There were also dynamos, for electric lighting. When the steam-driven dynamos were not at work, an iron-sailed windmill could be fitted, driving the dynamo at its base and thus supplying the accumulators with electric current.
Most of the instruments were lent by the Admiralty—astronomical, magnetic, meteorological, pendulum, and seismograph, as well as sounding gear with all the newest inventions, and dredging nets.
Baron Richthofen suggested to me that there should be synchronous observations at as many other observatories as possible. Captain Creak fully concurred and, in concert with him, I wrote to the observatories at Kew, Falmouth, Potsdam, Bombay, Mauritius, Melbourne, and Christ Church (N.Z.), also making arrangements with the Argentine Government for Staten Island, and for observations at Kerguelen Island, and with the Gauss. The object was to obtain a series of synoptic charts which would allow of the variations in the magnetic conditions of the whole earth being traced in detail during a definite period, and so provide the necessary basis from which alone the fundamental principles of terrestrial magnetism can be more closely approached. The observing stations to take part in this international co-operation were distributed over the globe with a uniformity never before attained.
The observations were of two classes: (1) of the three elements at intervals of an hour on certain terminal days, so as to obtain a comprehensive view of the diurnal variations of terrestrial magnetism, (2) of the three elements during one specified hour on each term day, to trace the course of individual disturbances. The Discovery, the Gauss, and all the observatories were supplied with identical forms for term days and term hours; declination, horizontal force, vertical force. The magnetic observations were the most carefully planned and completely thought out of all the branches of scientific work carried on by the expedition.
There was a complete supply of meteorological instruments under the able management of Lieutenant Royds, a most careful and accurate observer and recorder, and the observations were two-hourly, taken by the officers of the watch. Special instruments were taken out for use on shore including spirit thermometers graduated as low as -90° Fahr., and a Dines pressure anemometer. A photographic spectrometer was to be used for observing the auroras.
The most important question to be decided was the direction the expedition should take. To consider it with care and understanding we divided the regions within the Antarctic Circle into four quadrants—the Victoria Quadrant from 90° E. to 180°, the Ross Quadrant from 180° E. to 90° W., the Weddell Quadrant from 90° W. to 0°, and the Enderby Quadrant from 0° to 90° E. We knew from Captain Cook’s conclusion, and he was always right, that there was an extensive continent round the south pole, and that the coast line came furthest north to the south of Australia and the Cape, and receded furthest south in the King George IV Sea of Weddell and the Pacific. The correctness of Captain Cook’s view as regards the northern extension was proved by the discoveries of Balleny, Biscoe, and Kempe and confirmed, as regards Balleny’s discoveries, by Dumont d’Urville and Wilkes. Apparently, in most parts of this coast, access would be impossible owing to the lofty ice cliffs. Moreover, merely sighting ice cliffs at a distance is of no use. The great discoveries of Sir James Ross offered far better opportunities of landing. I felt that the chief point should be the finding of the land of Antarctica, not the ice cap which conceals everything. The land would be found on coasts facing east, the east coast of Victoria Land, and east coast of Graham Land; the ice cliffs occur mainly on northern and western-facing coasts.