Sacrifice in the Ice and Snow: Facing the Facts of Scott's Adventure

Captain Lawrence "Titus" Oates and Pony. Photo: * * Public resources

For lawrence oates, the Antarctic race has a portentous start. 19101.10. In October, the terranova expedition left New Zealand for only two days, and a violent storm killed two of Oates'19 ponies and almost sank the boat. Almost two years later, his journey was over. He walked out of the tent, said ten words and walked into the teeth of the Antarctic snowstorm, mourning the British with proud tears. During this long period of time, Oates' concern for the pony was the same as his disillusionment with the expedition leader Robert Falcken Scott.

Oates spent 1000 to join Scott's expedition, which should have combined exploration with scientific research. After Roald Amundsen, a Norwegian explorer, suddenly changed his announced plan to go to the North Pole, it soon became an Antarctic competition. "Please inform you that Frame is aboard the Amundsen in Antarctica," he wrote in a telegram to Scott. Obviously, Amundsen will leave the collection of rock specimens and penguin eggs to the British; He just wants to get to the North Pole first, then go back to his hometown and get honor in the lecture tour.

Oates, about 19 1 1 year. Picture: * * *

Lawrence oates1880 was born in a wealthy British family. Before becoming a junior officer in the Second Boer War, he studied at Eton College. A gunshot wound in a conflict earned Oates the nickname "Never surrender". His thigh is broken and his left leg is one inch shorter than his right leg.

At this point, robert scott wanted to take Oates to explore, but when Oates arrived in New Zealand, he was surprised to find that a crew member (only dogs, not horses) bought a pony in Manchuria at a price of 5 pounds each. Oates said that they are "the biggest crocodiles I have ever seen". From the past exploration, Scott came to the conclusion that white or gray ponies are stronger than dark horses, although there is no scientific evidence to prove this. When Oates told him that Manchuria pony was not suitable for expedition, Scott was angry and disagreed. Oates left angrily.

After checking the supply, Oates quickly guessed that there was not enough feed, so he bought two tons of feed with his own money and smuggled it onto terranova. 1910165438+1October 29th, when Scott and his crew set off from New Zealand to the South Pole with great fanfare, Oates had already questioned the expedition in his letter to his mother: "If he reaches the South Pole first, we can go home with our tails between our legs, and there will be no mistakes. I must say we think too highly of ourselves. All the photography, cheering and shuttling in the fleet are decadent. If we fail, it will only make us look more stupid. " Oates then praised Amundsen for planning to use dogs and skis instead of walking beside horses. "If Scott does something stupid, such as feeding his pony, he will definitely be killed."

After a painful and slow ice floe journey, the earth nova arrived at Ross Island in Antarctica on191110. These people unloaded the goods and set up a base in Evans. Some crew members set out for a hike in Whale Bay near Ross Ice Shelf in February, where they saw Amundsen's flame decompose. The next morning, they saw Amundsen riding his dog and sleigh across the ice at an amazing speed, ready to let his animals attack the South Pole about 900 miles away. Scott's men have no trouble except their own dogs, and their ponies can only trudge in the warehouse where they are going to store Arctic running supplies.

Considering the weight and skinny legs of ponies, they will jump from the top of the snow; Homemade snowshoes can only work for some people. On a trip, a pony fell down and the dog jumped on it and bit its meat. Oates knew enough to let the ponies on the shore know that several ponies of Ernest shackleton's nimrod expedition (1907- 1909) fell down and died after eating salty sand there. But he also knows that some of his animals simply can't stand any long-distance travel. He suggested to Scott that on the way to the North Pole, they killed the weak dog and put the meat in the warehouse. Even if Scott knew that Amundsen planned to kill many of his 97 Greenland dogs for the same purpose, he wouldn't have one.

"I'm fed up with this cruelty to animals," Scott replied. "I won't disregard my feelings for a few days of marching."

"I'm afraid you will." I'm sorry, sir, "Oates replied.

The crew of terranova continued to manage their warehouse, and the dog was "as thin as a rake" because of long hard work and a small amount of rations. Two ponies were exhausted in the snowstorm. Oates continued to question Scott's plan. 1911March, expedition members camped on the ice in McMurdo Strait, and a crew member was awakened by a loud noise in the middle of the night. They left the tent and found themselves trapped on a moving ice floe. The foal floated on another ice floe next to them.

These people jumped next to these animals and began to move them from the ice floe to the ice floe, trying to get them back to the Ross Ice Shelf safely. This is a slow job, because they often have to wait for another ice floe to approach before they can make progress.

Then a group of killer whales began to circle on the ice floe, sticking their heads out of the water and looking over the edge of the ice floe. Their eyes were fixed on the pony. As herry bowers described in his diary, "The huge black-and-yellow head and disgusting pig eyes are always by our side sometimes only a few yards away, which is one of my most disturbing memories that day. Huge fins are bad enough, but when they start to dodge vertically, it's really terrible.

Oates, Scott and others came to help. Scott is worried about losing his people, not to mention his pony. Soon, a dozen killer whales came around and scared the pony into the water. Oates and Bowles tried to pull them to safety, but it turned out that they were too heavy. A pony swam into the thick ice and survived. Bowles cut off the rest with a pick, so that the killer whales at least won't eat them alive.

"These events are terrible," Scott wrote.

To make matters worse, e19 1 1 year1month, Oates and other people 14 including Scott left Cape Evans for the South Pole. The warehouses along the way are full of food and supplies. "Scott's ignorance of walking with animals is enormous," Oates would write. "Personally, I hate Scott very much. If it weren't for the fact that we were an English expedition, I would have thrown the whole thing away ... he was not right, he did it himself and did nothing else. "

Scott is on the Antarctic side, from left to right are Wilson, Bowles, Evans, Scott and Oates. Photo: Unlike Scott, Amundsen pays attention to every detail, from the correct feeding of dogs and people, to the packing and unpacking of the goods they will carry, to the most effective skiing equipment with various ice and snow mixtures. His team travels twice as fast as Scott's, and Scott's team overhauls their sleigh.

By1912 65438+10/7 When Scott and his last batch of Oates, Bowles, Edward Wilson and edgar evans arrived at the South Pole, they saw a black flag flying in the wind. "The worst has happened," Scott wrote. Amundsen beat them for more than a month.

"Pole," Scott wrote. "Yes, but the situation is very different from expected. We had a bad day, and what disappointed us even more was the headwind of Grade 4 to 5, the temperature of 22 degrees, and the cold hands and feet working hard … Great God! This is a terrible place, which is terrible enough for us. We worked hard for it, but there was no priority award. Oates studied at Eton College before serving as a junior officer in the Second Boer War. A gunshot wound in a conflict earned Oates the nickname "Never surrender". His thigh is broken and his left leg is one inch shorter than his right leg.

Nevertheless, robert scott wanted Oates to explore with him, but when Oates arrived in New Zealand, he was surprised to find that a crew member (only dogs, not horses) bought ponies in Manchuria at a price of 5 pounds each. Oates said that they are "the biggest crocodiles I have ever seen". From the past exploration, Scott came to the conclusion that white or gray ponies are stronger than dark horses, although there is no scientific evidence to prove this. When Oates told him that the Manchurian pony was not suitable for expedition, Scott was angry and disagreed. Oates left angrily.

After checking the supply, Oates quickly guessed that there was not enough feed, so he bought two tons of feed with his own money and smuggled it onto terranova. 1910165438+1October 29th, when Scott and his crew set off from New Zealand to the South Pole with great fanfare, Oates had already questioned the expedition in his letter to his mother: "If he reaches the South Pole first, we can go home with our tails between our legs, and there will be no mistakes. I must say we think too highly of ourselves. All the photography, cheering and shuttling in the fleet are decadent. If we fail, it will only make us look more stupid. " Oates then praised Amundsen for planning to use dogs and skis instead of walking beside horses. "If Scott does something stupid, such as feeding his pony, he will definitely be killed."

After a painful and slow ice floe journey, the earth nova arrived at Ross Island in Antarctica on191110. These people unloaded the goods and set up a base in Evans. Some crew members set out for a hike in Whale Bay near Ross Ice Shelf in February, where they saw Amundsen's flame decompose. The next morning, they saw Amundsen riding his dog and sleigh across the ice at an amazing speed, ready to let his animals attack the South Pole about 900 miles away. Scott's men have no trouble except their own dogs, and their ponies can only trudge in the warehouse where they are going to store Arctic running supplies.

Considering their weight and skinny legs, ponies will jump to the top of the snow; Homemade snowshoes are only effective for some of them. On a trip, a pony fell down and the dog jumped on it and bit its meat. Oates knew clearly that ponies should be kept away from the coast, because he knew that several ponies of Ernest shackleton's nimrod expedition (1907- 1909) ate salty sand there and fell to the ground and died. But he also knows that some of his animals simply can't stand any long-distance travel. He suggested to Scott that on the way to the North Pole, they killed the weak dog and put the meat in the warehouse. Even if Scott knew that Amundsen planned to kill many of his 97 Greenland dogs for the same purpose, he wouldn't have one.

"I'm fed up with this cruelty to animals," Scott replied. "I won't disregard my feelings for a few days of marching."

"I'm afraid you will." I'm sorry, sir, "Oates replied.

The crew of terranova continued to manage their warehouse, and the dog was "as thin as a rake" because of long hard work and a small amount of rations. Two ponies were exhausted in the snowstorm. Oates continued to question Scott's plan. 1911March, expedition members camped on the ice in McMurdo Strait, and a crew member was awakened by a loud noise in the middle of the night. They left the tent and found themselves trapped on a moving ice floe. The foal floated on another ice floe next to them.

These people jumped next to these animals and began to move them from the ice floe to the ice floe, trying to get them back to the Ross Ice Shelf safely. This is a slow job because they often have to wait for another buoy to float before they can make any progress. I should have a story to tell my courage, perseverance and courage, which will arouse the hearts of every Englishman. These rough notes and our bodies must tell this story.

Roald Amundsen is already telling his story, a story of victory, a relatively easy journey to and from the South Pole. In early March, he opened the frame to Tasmania. He knew nothing about Scott's experience except that there was no trace of the British when the Norwegians arrived at the North Pole. It was not until June 2nd that the weather improved and a rescue team from terranova began to look for Scott and his companions. Next month, they came to Scott's last camp to clear the snow in the tent. Inside, they found three bodies in their sleeping bags. Oates' body was never found.

come from

Books: Ross D.E.MacPhee, Race to the End: Amundsen, Scott and Antarctic Achievements, American Museum of Natural History and Sterling Publishing Company, 20 10. Robert Falcken Scott, Scott's Last Adventure: A Diary, Carol and Graff Publishing House, 1996. David Crane and Scott in Antarctica: Biography, Retro Books, 2005. Roland Huntford, Scott and Amundsen: Antarctic Competition, Putnam, 1980.