Shackleton's Heroes (35 page)
Read Shackleton's Heroes Online
Authors: Wilson McOrist
Richards also remembered feeling sombre for the first half-hour after he reached Hut Point. He says that this was unusual for him. It was the only time he could recollect being somewhat sorry for himself. Mackintosh was still out on the Barrier, they were weak and low in spirits having just buried Spencer-Smith and they could hardly eat anything because their gums just about covered their teeth. He remembers thinking then of other returning parties in former expeditions who would have come back to warm greetings and some reasonable amenities of civilisation; food, comfort and medical care. But he says this mood passed very quickly.
40
Joyce had similar feelings.
Joyce:
Up at 7 o'clock; took binoculars and went over the slope to look around the Cape.
To my surprise found the open water and pack at the Cape only extended for about a mile.
Came down and gave the boys the good news. I think it would take another two hard days to get over the hills, and we are too weak to do much of that, as I am afraid of another collapsing.
41
Hayward:
Richards & Wild reconnoitred & found that the fissures which prevented us getting round Cape Armitage last night did not extend for more than 400 yds & we decided to try again.
Under way 11.30 hell of a job getting gear down on the sea-ice (afternoon) rounded the Cape & were pleased to find R & W report correct.
42
Joyce: âWe went round the Cape and found ice; very slushy, but continued on. No turning now; got into hard ice shortly after, eventually arriving at Hut Point about 3 o'clock.'
43
Wild: âHut Point at last.'
44
Joyce:
It seems strange after our adventures to arrive back at the old hut.
This place has been standing since we built it in 1901, and has been the starting-point of a few expeditions since. When we were coming down the bay I could fancy the â
Discovery
' there when Scott arrived from his Farthest South in 1902, the ship decorated rainbow fashion, and Lieu Armitage giving out the news that Capt Scott had got to 82 17. S. We went wild that day getting slightly intoxicated. But now our homecoming is quite different.
Hut half-full of snow through a window being left open + drift getting in; but we soon got it shipshape and Hayward in. I had the fire going + plenty of McDoddies dried veg there.
After we had had a feed, Richards and Wild went down the bay and killed a couple of seals.
I gave a good menu of seal meat at night + we turned in about 11 oclock, full in the tummy â too full in fact.
45
Hayward: âRichards was not long in killing a seal & we had our first meal of fresh food for months at 5 o/c & we are all grateful for our safety.'
46
Richards: âArrived Hut Point â killed seals and had first decent feed.'
47
Wild: âI haven't mentioned before but we all have a touch of scurvy & are on fresh food now trying to get rid of it.'
48
Joyce: âAs there is no news here of the ship, and we cannot see her, we surmise she has gone down with all hands. I cannot see there is any chance of her being afloat or she would be here. I don't know how the Skipper will take it.'
49
Hayward: âThere is no news of the ship & there can be no doubt that she has perished with all hands.'
50
Hayward had concerns for his health. He wrote at this time: âI am hoping that my legs will soon get better.'
51
Hayward had been working under the same conditions as Joyce and Richards since October 1915 but he had fallen ill before them. It seems that he had not eaten fresh meat as often as Joyce and Richards. In November 1915 the three men returned to Hut Point a number of times and Hayward would have had the opportunity to eat fresh meat then. However, at an interview in 1980 Richards said that Hayward, like Mackintosh and Spencer-Smith, was not as keen to eat seal meat as the others. His words were that these three men âwere the ones never too endured with seal meat' and he went on to say that he, Joyce and Wild all liked seal meat and ate it whenever they could.
52
From photographs Hayward was a far bigger man than the others, Richards called him burly and physically strong,
53
and this may have been a cause of Hayward falling ill before Joyce and Richards. As a bigger man he may have needed a larger share of the food ration. In Cope's medical report on the party's health in January 1917, he wrote: âIn the case of Hayward his constitution was not strong, and from 6 Jan (1916) when Mackintosh's party joined them he was pulling very heavy loads. Thus
Hayward succumbed despite the favourable auspices under which he had previously been working.'
54
Cope, however, could understand why Mackintosh's and Spencer-Smith's conditions weakened well before those of Joyce, Richards and Hayward:
Up to 13 Dec, 1916 Joyce's party enjoyed the rests made at Hut Point whereas Mackintosh's party only enjoyed one such rest. With this it must be remembered that during each rest stop fresh food was eaten, and on the fourth journey southward made by Joyce's party to the Bluff Depot freshly cooked meat (and part boiled meat for the dogs also) was taken which was all finished by 6 Jan, 1917 at 80° S.
55
Cope also gives a logical reason why Mackintosh and Spencer-Smith succumbed before Wild; their âdislike' of seal meat.
About 12 miles from the Bluff Depot on Joyce's fourth journey southwards the party met that of Capt Mackintosh and some freshly cooked meat which had been brought out for them was given over to the party.
Wild was the only man in this party who took full advantage of this opportunity of renewing his acquaintance with fresh food, both Mackintosh and Spencer-Smith exhibiting their dislike of seal meat they had both shown during the previous winter at Cape Evans, a point which must not be lost sight of seeing it would at least explain an early tendency to scurvy.
Cope also adds: âThe mildness of W's attack was probably due to his strong constitution and to his mode of life, he having before been used to doing hard work on a diet consisting considerably of artificial foods.'
56
He concluded his report with: âThe Southern party had lime juice with them both in liquid (fortified) and pastille form but the taking of it had no apparent effect on the scurvy. This was because it was not taken early enough when the scurvy had attacked them.'
57
Four men were now safe at
Discovery
hut at Hut Point. Mackintosh still had to be rescued but he was located only 30 miles south, on the Barrier, a few miles from where they had buried Spencer-Smith.
1.
Richards, interview with L. Bickel, 1976
2.
Richards letter to A. J. T. Fraser, 9 July 1961.
3.
Mackintosh diary, 15 March 1915
4.
Richards, interview with L. Bickel, 1976
5.
Joyce field diary, 8 March 1916
6.
Hayward diary, 8 March 1916
7.
Richards diary, 8 March 1916
8.
Wild diary, 8 March 1916
9.
Richards, interview with L. Bickel, 1976
10.
Richards,
The Ross Sea Shore Party
11.
Richards letter to A. J. T. Fraser, 9 July 1961
12.
Cope Medical Report of the Ross Sea Base ITAE. January 1917
13.
Wild diary, 9 March 1916
14.
Joyce field diary, 9 March 1916
15.
Richards letter to A. J. T. Fraser, 9 July 1961
16.
Wild diary, 9 March 1916
17.
Richards diary, 9 March 1916
18.
Joyce field diary, 9 March 1916
19.
Richards,
The Ross Sea Shore Party
20.
Hayward diary, 9 March 1916
21.
Joyce field diary, 9 March 1916
22.
Wild diary, 9 March 1916
23.
Richards diary, 9 March 1916
24.
Joyce field diary, 9 March 1916
25.
Richards diary, 9 March 1916
26.
Hayward diary, 9 March 1916
27.
Wild diary, 10 March 1916
28.
Cope Medical Report of the Ross Sea Base ITAE. January 1917.
29.
Richards diary, 9 March 1916
30.
Hayward diary, 9 March 1916
31.
Joyce field diary, 9 March 1916
32.
Ibid., 10 March 1916
33.
Hayward diary, 10 March 1916
34.
Joyce field diary, 10 March 1916
35.
Wild diary, 10 March 1916
36.
Hayward diary, 10 March 1916
37.
Joyce field diary, 10 March 1916
38.
Richards,
The Ross Sea Shore Party
39.
Richards, interview with L. Bickel, 1976
40.
Richards letter to L. B. Quartermain, 19 November 1963
41.
Joyce field diary, 11 March 1916
42.
Hayward diary, 11 March 1916
43.
Joyce field diary, 11 March 1916
44.
Wild diary, 11 March 1916
45.
Joyce field diary, 11 March 1916
46.
Hayward diary, 11 March 1916
47.
Richards diary, 11 March 1916
48.
Wild diary, 11 March 1916
49.
Joyce field diary, 11 March 1916
50.
Hayward diary, 11 March 1916
51.
Ibid.
52.
Richards, interview with P. Law, December 1980
53.
Richards letter to L. B. Quartermain, 27 January 1962
54.
Cope Medical Report of the Ross Sea Base ITAE. January 1917
55.
Ibid.
56.
Ibid.
57.
Ibid.
A
T HUT POINT
, Joyce, Richards and Wild recuperated and made ready for their trek back to rescue Mackintosh. Hayward was to stay at the hut because he could not walk. In his interviews Richards explained that they did not immediately head south again to bring in Mackintosh because they had to recover, and mend their clothes and fur boots. In addition the sea-ice had come into the shore at Hut Point and was liable to go out at any moment. Once this happened there would be less seals about and it was essential to get a good store of meat and blubber while they could. Some of the meat they would cook to take with them when they went out to pick up Mackintosh.
1
Joyce was happy:
Heard groans proceeding from the sleeping all night. All hands suffering from overeating.
Turned out 8 oclock, good breakfast. Porridge Seal + Veg + Coffee more like a Banquet to us. After breakfast Richy + Wild killed a couple of seals.
Hayward not very well all limbs swollen + black Gums very prominent. Hayward cannot hardly move. All of us in a very bad state but we must keep up exercise. my ankles + knees badly swollen, gums prominent. Wild very black around Joints + Gums very black. Richards is about the best off.
After digging hut out which made the hut a bit comfy prepared food which will keep the scurvy down.
The dogs have lost their lassitude + are quite frisky, except Oscar who is suffering from overfeeding.
After a good strenuous days work turned in 10 o'clock.
2
Hayward: âWe are all engaged drying out togs &c & Joyce Richards & Wild preparing for their trip to bring in the Skipper. I need hardly say how disappointed I am at being unable see this thing through to the end.'
3
Joyce, Richards and Wild spent a second full day recovering, and making ready to go out for Mackintosh.
Wild: âSpent the day drying bag & killing seals & getting ready to go for the Skipper. Today it has been blowing & drifting. We've been cooking seal meat to take with us & mending bags & finneskos, etc. We hope to make a start for the Skipper in the morning.'
4
Richards: âHayward could only hobble.'
5
Hayward: âHaving plenty of fresh meat & find it improving us all pretty rapidly. The others have decided to start to-morrow, so far sea-ice remains in.'
6
Joyce:
Turned out 7 o'clock. Carried on much the same as yesterday bringing in seal blubber + meat. Preparing for departure tomorrow. Hope everyone will be alright. Made new dog harness + prepared sledge in afternoon cooked sufficient seal meat for our journey out and back + same for dogs, turned in 10 o'clock feeling much better.
7
On 14 March, Joyce, Richards, Wild and the four dogs set off south. In his book Richards tells us they left Hayward with a supply of cooked seal meat and everything he needed close by. At this time Hayward could only just move about but the others felt he would be able to manage well enough until they returned.
8
The three men made excellent progress for the day to reach Safety Camp on the Barrier. They were a wild-looking party â note Joyce's âracist' description.
Hayward: âJoyce R & W pulled out about 2 o/c & I start my arbitrary bachelordom for a week. How I wish I was fit & able go out again. I absolutely cannot bend my knees & to walk is agonizing.'
9
Richards: âLeft Hut Point for Skipper.' He added later: âIt was necessary to recuperate before turning South again and repair some of our gear.'
10
Joyce:
A beautiful day. Under way after lunch. One would think, looking at our party, that we were the most ragged lot one could meet in a day's march; all our clothes past mending, our faces as black as niggers â a sort of crowd one would run away from. Going pretty good.
As soon as we rounded CA
*
a dead head wind with a temp of -18 so we are not in for a pleasant time. Arrived at Safety Camp 6 o'clock, turned in 8.30 â after getting everything ready.
11
Richards: âGood march. Cold at night. Dogs better than thought.'
12
Joyce: âUnder way as usual. Nice calm day. I had a very cold night temp going down to -30. Going along at a rattling good rate in spite of our swollen limbs we done about 20 miles. Very cold when we camped temp -20 turned in 9 o'clock.'
13
They were now camped within 10 or 15 miles from Mackintosh.
They travelled well and in the early afternoon they could see Mackintosh's tent. Richards recalled at interviews that Mackintosh seemed a little dazed when they came up to him and gave him the news of Spencer-Smith's death. It did not seem to make a big impression on him. Mackintosh âdidn't say bad luck or what have you' and Richards put this down to his lonely vigil on the ice shelf. Mackintosh told them that at times his mind had been wandering and he found himself talking to imaginary people in the tent during their absence.
14
Richards explained that it was fairly unemotional when they came up to Mackintosh because they were quite sure they would find him and quite sure he would be alright. To Richards it was âjust all in a day's work'; nothing like he felt when they went back and found the tent with Mackintosh, Spencer-Smith and Wild during the long blizzard.
15
They found Mackintosh could only shuffle along with the aid of two sticks so they put him on the sledge and headed back towards Hut Point.
16
Joyce:
Up before the sun 4.45 had a very cold night. Not much sky under way early. Good going passed Smith's grave 10.45 + had lunch at Depot. Saw Skippers camp just after + looking through the glasses found him outside the tent much to the joy of all hands as we expected him to be down.
Picked him up 4.15. broke the news of Smiths death + no ship he took it very well + said it was the best time of his life to see us. I gave him the date of the 17th to look out for our returning. So he had a surprise.
17
Wild: âWe got to the Skipper's camp about 4 o'clock yesterday & packed up & came a little way on the home track. He can still manage to get about hobbling.'
18
That night Joyce wrote:
We struck his camp + went N. for about a mile + camped. We gave the Skipper + banquet of seal veg + blackcurrent jam, the feed of his life.
He explained every morning in his sleep as semi conscious state he had most peculiar dreams + always found himself talking to supposed people in the tent. I looked at him pretty straight + though he was still a little ⦠[indecipherable] but I think he is all right. He seems in a very bad way all his legs badly swollen + black, eye distended gums very swollen + black. I hope to get home in 3 day's + I think fresh food will improve him. We turned in 8 oclock. Distance done during day 18 miles.
19
Joyce: âUp at 5 oclock under way 8 â Skipper feeling much better after feeding him up. Lunched a few yards past Smiths grave. Had a good afternoon going fair. Dist about 20 miles.
âVery cold night temp -30, what with wet bags + clothes rotten ------------.'
20
Back at Hut Point Hayward wrote nothing more than: âReading Thinking Eating.'
21
Joyce, Richards and Wild, with Mackintosh, reached Hut Point safely.
Joyce:
Turned out 5 oclock. Had rather a cold night. Temp -39 Surface very good, got the Skipper to have a walk for a little way which done him good. Lunched as usual. Pace good after lunch, going good arrived at Safety Camp 4.10. To our delight found the sea ice in the same conditions + arrived at Hut Pt 7 oclock.
22
Wild:
Hut Point again. Hooray.
We have exceeded our utmost expectation. Getting back here last night at 6.30
doing about 84 geo miles in two days with the Skipper on the sledge. Skipper and Hayward can just manage to get about. We others are just about all right now.
23
Richards: âHut Point. Hayward safe. He had been left behind when we returned for the Skipper.'
24
Hayward was very pleased: âJoyce & party with Skipper who I am glad to say is no worse, got back about 6 pm having made a jolly good trip of it.'
25
Joyce wrote that evening:
Found Hayward still about the same, yet he made a good dinner + all hands seem in the best of spirits. Now we have arrived + got the party in remains to themselves to get better plenty of exercise + fresh food ought to do miracles. We have been out 202 days (* with September sledging) + done a distance of about 1900 miles a good record. I think the irony of fate was poor Smith going under a day before we got in.
Had a thorough exam of the Skipper + found from his right hip bone down to knee a heavy blue + hard (swollen) from the knee to ankle (blue stripe) ankle swollen out of proportion. gums swollen but not so black, white of eye distended. Appetite extraordinary good. Feels in himself a different manâ a good improvement
Hayward, gums very swollen + black eyes as usual. Knees cannot bend at all not swollen or just slightly black walks like a bent up old man.
Richards right leg + gums slightly swollen.
Wild right leg behind knee black, slightly swollen gums very swollen.
Myself right leg behind knee still + gums slightly swollen I think we shall all soon be well turned in 10.30.
Before turning in Skipper shook us by the hand with great emotion thanking us for saving his life + said his wife + children will bless us.
26
Always the realist, Wild wrote: âWe shall settle down here now for a couple of months.'
27
The five remaining men of the Mount Hope Party were now safe. Conditions at
Discovery
hut were primitive but they knew they would soon recover from scurvy on their diet of seal meat. Once mid-winter came they would be able to walk safely over the sea-ice to Cape Evans.
Their long journey was now over, and successful, except for the loss of Spencer-Smith. Joyce remembered being âas happy as a Piccadilly masher'.
â
28
Many years later Richards was still very proud of the work they had accomplished. In his book he wrote that they had the satisfaction of knowing that they had completed their task and that Shackleton would have had sufficient food over the latter part of his journey. He also added that man-hauling sledges for 1,500 miles with poor equipment and no support from a well-established base was a very notable task. To Richards it was an Antarctic journey that âcould rank with most that had gone on before'.
29
The hut was full of ice and snow which had come in through a broken window so they cleared out a small corner to live in. In their first two weeks at Hut Point, from 19 March to early April, they slowly recovered and their diary entries were sparse. They knew they would be there until mid-winter, at least.
It would be June or July before they could expect the open water between Hut Point and Cape Evans to freeze over. It was possible to go around the land to Cape Evans but they never thought of attempting to travel that way, and certainly not without the right equipment. Plus, the light was poor and by mid-April it was dark for twenty-four hours of the day. The only way they intended to cross the 13 miles to Cape Evans was directly over the sea-ice, and during a full moon; and then only when the sea-ice had frozen firmly. With two invalids they resigned themselves to a protracted stay at Hut Point.
30
31
Hayward: âThere will not be much to record, these days of residence at Hut Pt. Skipper & I did the goose step for an hour or so by way of exercise. His legs are very much worse than mine, being practically blue all over.'
32
Richards: âFixing Hut for winter. Rubbed Mackintosh and Haywood with spirit to ease their legs. Skipper brighter. Haywood less cheerful.'
33
Joyce:
Up at 7 oclock. Got a good scones breakfast of seal liver porridge scones etc. All hands to judge by appetites found are in better health than one thinks to see the way that they are stowing away. Spent all day in living quarters, fixing up things. Sent the invalids out for exercise. Lunch at 2 oclock same store of provisions. Carried on again fixed up the living room by 7 oclock had dinner. Turned in 1 oclock.
After enquiring found all hands in about the same condition except appetite much better, that is can eat twice as much as ordinary man. Skipper right ankle swelled a little more + legs are a bit stiffer. I think he had too much exercise to-day.
34
Joyce:
Up 8 oclock. Cooked break appetites marvelous [sic] after break un packed took stock of stores. Shall have to allow until the middle of June so have got to allowance until then. Found in some things full + plenty but dripping the most essential thing found only 9 tins so shall have to have more boiled stews.
Patients could not go out on as of the cold wind + drift from SE. Everyone in good spirits. Richards massaging which seems to ease the muscles greatly. Gums gradually going down except Hayward's which are black. Turned in 9 oclock.
35
Hayward: âBlowing pretty hard & not much doing.'
36