Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1913-02-20
DETAILS d ! OF POLAII
DISASTER LEARNED
Bodies Of Explorers Discovered
Only II Miles From Their
Supply Depot.

& {, .l .4t So
London. Feb. "A number Of de-
tails OF the disaster In which Captain
Scott. and four Of his men persisted in
the Antarctic are brought here In spe-
cial dispatches OF the Central News
service. Captain Oates evidently set
out from the tent in which the four
men had all but succumbed to starvAr
ton and exhaustion to brave death
alone In the blizzard which had OvuHe
whelmed them.
Captain Oates deliberately let him
self freeze to death. that he might no
longer delay the rest, and Scott. Will
son and Bowers froze to death In 3 tent
several days later The last entry in
the diary was March %. 1912 The
bodies were found only IL miles from
One Ton depot, where the expedition
had left supplies. 81 sgsgs
Oates declared to his comrades that
he was going to set out In the storm,
and didn't know when he would come
back. He left the tent and never was
seen again. He evidently knew he
was setting out to meet his death
alone.
Captain Scott paid q touching tribute
to the bravery and self sacrifice OF
Oates, and was unsparing in his praise
of the other henderson the party. Pet
ty Officer Evans died as the result OF
a fall.
Evans begged his leaders to leave
him, but they struggled slowly on.
while the pitfless Antarctic winter
they had planned to escape drew grim
ly in upon them.
With Evans dead the remaining
quartet forged on, hoping against hope
to win their winter quarters and COM
panions before the blasting breath OF
the polar winter could blow their death
call. They were forced into camp again
on the 21st of March after nine days
struggle in the blizzard. Food and fuel
were both exhausted. #
Probably realizing that his party was
doomed, Captain Scott entered In his
diary four days later--on the 18th OF
March-"A Message to the Public"
In this he declared that the disaster
was not due to faulty organization, but
| to misfortune. He said nobody in the
world could expect to successfully en-
counter such temperatures and storms
as they had met on the barrier, which
| so retarded their progress. When they
arrived within 11miles of One Ton depot
| they had fuel for one hot meal and
food fer two; days.
The doomed explorer wrote apollo
| getically of his rough notes. He said
these and the bodies must tell the tale.
| He appealed to his countryrnen for the
/ care of those dependent upon the per-
| ishing explorers.
According to the special dispatches
the Terra Nova relief party that found
the bodies read simple burial ritual
over them. A cairn was erected over
| the bodies.
The relief expeditions then set out In
l search for Captain Oates. but although
| they covered 20 miles, they discovered
no trace of his body. 1t was with great
| difficulty that the party brought back
| all of the records, including Amund-a
sens letter to the king OF Norway and;
4
/ mems.
March %. 1912, the date Of Captain
i Scott's last message to the pMhliH, ~
believed to have been written only
four days before death overlook the
party. NJ
WIDOW OF SCOTT NOT
INFORMED OF DISASTER
Honolulu Feb. 14.-All efforts to
communicate by wireless with the
steamship sAorangi, on which the widow
/ of Captain Robert w. Scott sailed
from San Francisco February 5, in the
expectation of meeting her husband In
New Zealand. were abandoned this
morning after "a hours Of futile sig
mailing BY o'clock 1t was deemed
certain that the Aorangi had passed
beyond the reach Of the powerful APP
paratus of the wireless here. and the
great stack of messages for Mrs. Scott
received here from all parts OF the
world to be forwarded at once, re-
| manned unsent.
London, Feb. 1.-THE lord mayor of
i London announced today the opening
OF a mansion house. fund for the
erection of a memorial to Capt. Robert
/ +. Scott and his companions who died
in the antarctic.
The duty OF providing for dependent
| relatives Of the dead explorers he con-
n eytn stall