The Discovery Diary

William joined the Discovery in London on June 30^th 1901. A month later the ship sailed for Spithead. William had two days leave at home then on August 6^th, in the words of his diary, “I said good bye to wife & Child went on board proceeded to Cowes & was inspected by the King and Queen.” William kept a detailed account of the ship’s arrival in the Antarctic, recording the sighting (and capture) of different kinds of seals and penguins, as well as writing descriptions of the landscape. His diary for January 9^th 1902 reads:

"Last night being clear the sun was shining beautifully all night - quite summer weather we are having now. Sighted Mount Sabine at 11.30pm 120 miles off at the back of Cape Adare. I have been on shore for a look round. There is nothing here except volcanic eruption and stones. This is where the members of the Southern Cross wintered while they were here… I have left a letter here to my wife – she may get it some day if the postman should happen to come this way.”

His accounts are usually simply written but are full of interesting observations. This can be seen in one of his early entries after the return of the first big sledge party. William was busy organizing the base so he didn’t join the group. When the party returned after an eventful time, which including the loss of seaman George Vince (the only death to occur in the Antarctic on either of Captain Scott’s expeditions until the polar party), William wrote at length in his diary, analyzing in detail the report of the sledge team’s battle with the weather and the difficult terrain.

"11.3.02 Well, this has been a very unfortunate day for us. Heavy snowstorm and tremendous wind — can't see a foot before you hardly. Temperature about 15o below zero. We are thinking of the sledge party all day and saying they ought not to come on in this weather, as it is almost fatal to get abroad in wind like this. We know they are getting close to the ship, but if they get into the tent and keep out of the wind they will be all right and won't get too many frost bites. But it appears that they struck camp this morning at 8 o'clock and proceeded on their way towards the ship. Arrived on top of the hill they pitched and had some lunch. The wind and snow increased. Some of the men got frostbitten. Then thinking that they were not very far from the ship they struck tents and set out leaving sledges and all behind. This is a very dangerous place to start on such a day. They had not proceeded far before they lost Hare, he having gone back for his ski-boots. The whole lot turned tail to try and find him. While thus engaged Evans slipped on a glacier or slope and disappeared. Lieutenant Barne sits down and goes after him, the others waiting a time. Then Quartley goes and tries to find them, but did not return. So the others proceeded on their way to the ship. But they had not gone far before they all — Wild, Plumley, Heald, Weller, and Vince—went down an ice slope. Vince having fur boots could not bring up at all on the ice so went clean over the cliff into the sea below, and no way whatever of getting back. The others were utterly helpless. The snow was blinding and they could not see anything ahead of them. The only thing they could do was to try to get back to the top of the slope which they did under great difficulty. There were now five gone out of nine, leaving four. After roving about for some hours they finally reached the ship about 8.30 p.m. with the sad news of what had happened. A search party was at once prepared and a party sent round the coast to look along the shore in case of any of them, being cast on an ice flow or anything. In the meantime we lit up one boiler and got steam so that we could draw their attention to the ship's whereabouts with the siren and Mr Armitage left the ship with the search party. Mr Barne, Quartley and Evans brought up on a slope and lost their bearings, and luckily just missed going into the sea. The siren gave them some clue to where they were, and they made tracks for the ship. The search party met them and found Mr Barne and Evans rather badly frost bitten. Quartley not quite so bad, but all three in more or less a dazed condition. Mr Ferrar accompanied them back to the ship. This was three more safe, leaving two still adrift. The search party went on to try and find Hare, but with no success whatever, returning to the ship at 3 a.m.

12.3.02 The wind still blowing. Today another search party sent out to look for Hare, but no result. It appears that Mr Royds, Skelton and Dr Koetflitz are going on to Cape Crozier with the despatches. The snow being too deep for anyone on foot to travel they have gone on ski taking enough provisions for fourteen days or reduced twenty-one days. We are all hoping they are safe".

A day later William reports that, amazingly, Hare had turned up safe. But Vince was never found and presumed dead.

Next: The Terra Nova Diary