Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-4rdpn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-03T08:53:54.075Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Commentary on Could Captain Scott have been saved? Cecil Meares and the ‘second journey’ that failed

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 June 2018

Bill Alp
Bill Alp*
Affiliation:
Wellington, New Zealand ([email protected])
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Extract

The article Could Captain Scott have been saved? Cecil Meares and the second journey that failed, by Karen May and Sarah Airriess, first published in Polar Record in 2014 (May & Airriess, 2015), builds a case against Cecil Meares for a failure to restock One Ton Depot in accordance with Scott's instructions. The authors claim that Meares was guilty of disobedience, neglect of duty and ‘obfuscation’. However, their case is diminished – in my view – by three significant mistakes that undermine their charges against Meares. In the three sections below, I identify those mistakes and consider whether the strong claims May and Airriess make about Meares are justified.

Type
Commentary
Information
Polar Record , Volume 54 , Issue 2 , March 2018 , pp. 181 - 183
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2018 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Atkinson, E.L. (2011). The last year at Cape Evans. In Scott, R.F., Scott's last expedition (pp. 665–700). Ware, UK: Wordsworth Editions Ltd.Google Scholar
Cherry-Garrard, A.G.B. (1912a). Sledging journal, 3 November 1911 to 28 January 1912. Cambridge, UK: Scott Polar Research Institute, MS 559/5; BJ.Google Scholar
Cherry-Garrard, A.G.B. (1912b). Journal, 29 January to 22 February 1912. Cambridge, UK: Scott Polar Research Institute, MS 559/4; BJ.Google Scholar
Cherry-Garrard, A.G.B. (1912c). Journal, 2 November 1912 to 13 January 1913. Cambridge, UK: Scott Polar Research Institute, MS 559/10; BJ.Google Scholar
Cherry-Garrard, A.G.B. (1912d). Journal, 24 February to 24 April 1912. Cambridge, UK: Scott Polar Research Institute, MS 559/7; BJ.Google Scholar
Cherry-Garrard, A.G.B. (1994). The worst journey in the world. London, UK: Picador.Google Scholar
Cherry-Garrard, A.G.B. (2010). The worst journey in the world. London: Vintage Books.Google Scholar
Evans, E.R.G.R. (1961). South with Scott. London: Collins.Google Scholar
Hooper, F.J. (1912). Journal. Christchurch, New Zealand: Canterbury Museum, MS149.Google Scholar
May, K. (2013). Could Captain Scott have been saved? Revisiting Scott's last expedition. Polar Record, 49, 72–90.Google Scholar
May, K., & Airriess, S. (2015). Could Captain Scott have been saved? Cecil Meares and the ‘second journey’ that failed. Polar Record, 51, 260–273.Google Scholar
Simpson, G.C. (undated). Transcribed version of Simpson's journal. Cambridge, UK: Scott Polar Research Institute, MS 1097/49.Google Scholar
Wright, C.S. (1993). Silas: the Antarctic diaries and memoir of Charles S. Wright. Bull, C. & Wright, P.F. (Eds.). Columbus, USA: Ohio State University Press.Google Scholar