wholetthedogsout

TheColdestPlaceOnEarth

Chapter1TwoShips

Theracebeganinthesummerof1910．

OnJunelst，inLondon，ablackship，theTerraNova，wentdowntheriverThamestothe

a．Thousandsofpeoplestoodbytherivertowatchit．Theywereallexcitedandhappy．

OntheTerraNova，CaptainRobertFalconScottsmiledquietly．Itwasaveryimportantdayfor

him．Hewasastrongman，notverytall，intheblueclothesofacaptain．Hewasforty-oneyears

old，buthehadayoungface，likeaboy．Hiyesweredarkandquiet．

Onemanontheship，TitusOates，smiledatScott．

'Whatanexcitingday，Captain！'hesaid．'Lookatthopeople！Ifeellikeanimportant

man！'

Scottlaughed．'Youareimportant，Titus，'hesaid．'Andyou'regoingtobefamous，too．We

allare．Doyouethisflag？'HelookedatthebigBritishflagatthebackoftheship，andsmiledat

Oates．'Thatflagiscomingwithus，'hesaid．

'IntheAntarctic，I'mgoingtocarryitundermyclothes．We'regoingtobethefirstmenatthe

SouthPole，andthatflagisgoingtobefirst，too！'

*****

Fivedayslater，onJune6th，amanopenedthedoorofhiswoodenhouinNorway．Hewasa

tallman，withalongface．Hewaitedoutsidethehouforaminute．Everythingwasvery

quiet．Hecouldenohous，onlymountains，trees，andwa-ter．Itwasnearlydark．Thesky

wasblackoverthemountains．

Themansmiled，andwalkedquicklyawayfromthehou，downtothea．Inthewater，a

bigwoodenshipwaitedforhim．Themangotontotheship，andtalkedandlaughedquietlywithhis

friends．

Theship'snamewasFram，andthemanwasRoaldAmundn．TheFramwasthemost

beautifulshiponearth，Amundnthought．Hisfriendswerethebestskiersonearth，too．Oneof

them，OlavBjaaland，smiledathim．

'NorthPole，herewecome，Captain，'hesaid．

'Yes．'Amundnsaid．Hisfriendscouldnotehisfaceinthedark．'Framisgoingtothe

Arctic．'

第1页共14页

EveryoneontheFramwasreadytogototheNorthPole，totheArctic．Amundnwantedtogo

there，too．Butfirsthewantedtogosouth．Hisfriendsdidn'tknowthat．

AtmidnightonJune6th，theFrammovedquietlyawayfromAmundn'shou，outtoa．

Chapter2TheRace

TheFramwenttoanislandinthesouthofNorway．Itwasaverylittleisland，withonlyone

smallwoodenhou，twotrees—andnearlyahundreddogs．

'Lookatthat！'Bjaalandsaid．'It'sanislandofdogs！Therearedogsinthewater，nearthe

trees，onthehou—dogverywhere！'

Twomencameoutofthehou．'Hasl！Lindstrom！'Amundnsaid．'It'sgoodtoeyou！

Howmanydogsdoyouhaveforme？'

'Ninety-nine，Roald，'saidHasl．'Thebestninety-ninedogsfromGreenland．Andthey're

veryhappy！Theydon'twork；theyjusteatandplayallday！They'rehavingawon-derfulsummer

here！'

'Good，good．'Amundnlaughed．'Butthat'sfinishednow．Hey，Bjaaland！Stoplaughing—

comedownhereandhelpme．Let'sgetallthedogsontotheship！'

Itwasnoteasy．Thedogswerefatandstrong，andtheydidn'twanttogoontheship．Butat

last，afterthreehours'hardwork，allninety-ninewereontheship，andtheFramwentouttoa

again．

Themenwerenothappy．Theweatherwasbad，thedogsweredirty，andsomeofthemen

wereill．Theybegantoaskquestions．

'Whyarewebringingdogswitnus？'askedoneman，Jo-hann．'We'regoingthousandsof

kilometressouth，pastCapeHorn，andthennorthtoAlaska．Whynotwait，andgetdogsin

Alaska？'

'Don'taskme，'saidhisfriend，HelmerHansn，'Idon'tunderstandit．'

Thementalkedforalongtime．Then，onSeptember9th，Amundncalledeveryonetothe

backoftheship．Hestoodquietlyandlookedatthem．Behindhimwasabigmap．Itwasnotamap

oftheArctic．ItwasamapofAntarctica．

BjaalandlookedatHelmerHansn，andlaughed．ThenAmundnbegantospeak．

'Boys，'hesaid．'Iknowyouareunhappy．Youoftenaskmedifficultquestions，andIdon't

answer．Well，I'mgoingtoan-swerallthoquestionsnow，today．

Webegantoworkforthisjourneytwoyearsago．Then，wewantedtobethefirstmenatthe

第2页共14页

NorthPole．Butlastyear，Peary，anAmerican，foundtheNorthPole．SoAmericawasfirsttothe

NorthPole，notNorway．We'regoingthere，butwe'retoolate．'

'Idon'tunderstandthis，'Bjaalandthought．'WhyisAmundntalkingabouttheNorth

Pole，withamapofAntarcticabehindhim？'

Amundnstoppedforaminute，andlookedatallthemenslowly．Noonesaidanything．

'WehavetogoalongwaysouthbeforewegettoAlaska，'hesaid．'VerynearAntarctica，you

know．AndCaptainScott，theEnglishman，isgoingtotheSouthPolethisyear．Hewantstoputhis

Britishflagthere．AnAmericanflagattheNorthPole，aBritishflagattheSouthPole．'

Bjaalandbegantounderstand．Hestartedtosmileandcouldn'tstop．Hewaswarmand

excited．

'Well，boys，'Amundnsaidslowly．'DowewanttheBritishtoputtheirflagattheSouthPole

first？Howfastcanwetravel？Wehavealotofdogs，andsomeofthemostwon-derfulskierson

earth—BjaalandhereisthebestinNorway！SoIhaveanidea，boys．Let'sgototheSouth

Pole，andputtheNorwegianflagtherebeforetheBritish！Whatdoyousay？'

Foraminuteortwoitwasveryquiet．Amundnwaited，andthemenwatchedhimand

thought．ThenBjaaland

laughed．

'Yes！'hesaid．'Whynot？It'saskirace，isn'tit，andtheEnglishcan'tski！It'sawonderful

idea，ofcour！Let'sgo！'

Chapter3ThePonies

OnOctober27th，theTerraNovaarrivedinWellington，NewZealand．WhenScottcameoffthe

ship，anewspa-permanwalkeduptohim．

'CaptainScott！CaptainScott！CanItalktoyou，plea！'hesaid．

Scottstoppedandsmiled．'Yes，ofcour，'hesaid．'Whatdoyouwanttoknow？'

'Areyougoingtowin？'themanasked．

'Win？'Scottasked．'Winwhat？'

'WintheracetotheSouthPole，ofcour，'thenewspapermansaid．'It'saracebetweenyou

andAmundn，now．Lookatthis！'HegaveanewspapertoScott．Scottlookedatit．Itsaid：

Scott'sfacewentwhite．'Givemethat！'hesaid．Hetookthenewspaperandreaditcarefully．The

newspapermanwatchedhim，andwaited．'Well，CaptainScott，'hesaidatlast．'Who'sgoingto

第3页共14页

winthisrace？Tellmethat！'

Scottlookedathimangrily．'Thisisstupid！'hesaid．'It'snotarace！Icameheretolearn

abouttheAntarctic—I'mnotinterestedinAmundn，orinraces！'Thenhewalkedbackon-tohis

ship，withthenewspaperinhishand．

Laterthatday，hetalkedtohismen．Hegavethemthenewspaper，andlaughed．

'Itdoesn'tmatter，'hesaid．'We'reinfrontofAmundn，andwehavemoremen，andmore

money．Hehasonlyeightmen，andalotofdogs．Iknowaboutdogs—theydon'tworkinthe

Antarctic．Wehavesixteenmenandthenewmotorsledges—theyaremuchbetter．Andtomorrow

theponiesarecoming．Weneedponies，motorsledges，andgoodstrongBritishmen—that's

all．ForgetaboutAmundn！He'snotimportant！'

ScottaskedOatestolookaftertheponies，buthedidnotletOatesbuythem．WhenOatesfirst

sawtheponies，inNewZealand，hewasveryunhappy．Mostoftheponieswereold，andsomeof

themwereill．

'They'rebeautifulponies，Titus，'Scottsaid．'TheycomefromChina—they'rewonderful

ponies！'

Oateslookedatthemangrily，andsaidnothing．Thenheasked：'Whereistheir

food，Captain？'

'Here！'Scottopenedadoor．

Oateslookedinside．Hethoughtforaminute．'Weneedmorefoodthanthis，CaptainScott！

Theponiesaregoingtoworkinthecoldestplaceonearth—theyneedalotoffood—morethan

this！'

Scottsmiledquietly．'Wecan'ttakemorefoodonthisship，Titus．Wherecanweputit？Butit

doesn'tmatter，oldboy．They'reverystrongponies，youknow．Thebestponiesonearth．'

Laterthatnight，Oateswrotealettertohismother．TherearenineteenponiesontheTerra

Novanow，hewrote．Allthepeniesareinasmallroomatthefrontoftheship．Weeatourfoodin

theroomundertheponies，soourtableisoftenwetanddirty．Scottmakesalotofmistakes，I

think，andAntarc-ticaisaverydangerousplace．

Chapter4FoodDepots

Thetwoships，TerraNovaandfram，arrivedinAntarctica，inJanuary1911，attheendof

summer．TheEnglishmenandtheNorwegianswantedtostayontheiceallwinter．Theywantedto

bereadytogototheSouthPoleatthebeglnningofthenextAntarcticsummer．

ThedogspulledtheNorwegians'sledges．Theyranquicklyoverthesnowandpulledthebig

sledgesfromtheshipontotheice．Themenranbesidethemonskis．

第4页共14页

Theyputabigwoodenhouontheice．Thehouwasfulloffood，andskis，and

sledges．TheycalleditFramheim．Out-sidethehou，thedogslivedinholesunderthe

snow．Whenthehouwasready，themenmadetheirfirstjourneysouth．

Beforethewinter，theywantedtotakealotoffoodsouth，andleaveitindepots．Forthelong

journeytothePole，theyneededalotoffood，andtheycouldn'tcarryitallwiththem．OnFebruary

10th，fivemen，threesledges，eighteendogs，andhalfatonneoffoodleftFramheimandwent

south．

Itwaasy．TheweatherwaswarmfortheAntarctic，be-tween—7°Centigradeand—

17°Centigrade．Thesnowwasgood，andthedogsandskiswentfast．Theywentfiftyorsixty

kilometreveryday．Afterfourdaystheyreached80°South，andmadethefirstdepot．

Amundnmadehisdepotverycarefully．Itwasveryim-portanttofinditagain，next

summer．Soheputabigblackflagontop．Thenheputtenflagstotheeastofthedepot—eachflag

halfakilometrefromthenext—andtenflagstothewest．Sotherewereflagsforfivekilometresto

theleftofthedepot，andfivekilometrestotheright．

ThentheywentbacktoFramheim，andtooksomemorefoodsouth，thistimeto82°South．

Thistimeitwasharder．Thetemperaturewassometimes－40°Centigrade，andtherewere

strongwindswithalotofsnow．Thedogsandmenwereverytired，andthetentsandbootswere

bad．Attheconddepot，theyputoutsixtyflags，tohelpthemfinditagain．

TheycamebacktoFramheimonMarch23rd．ItwasnearlywinterintheAntarctic．Theirship

Framwasfarawaynow，nearSouthAmerica．Theywerealoneontheice．

*****

OateswentwithScotttomakethefirstBritishdepot．TheyleftCapeEvansonJanuary

25th．Therewerethirteenmen，eightponies，andtwenty-sixdogs．Thedogswerefasterthanthe

ponies—theyranquicklyoverthetopofthesnow，buttheponies'feetwentthroughit．Every

morningtheponiesstartedfirst，andthedogsstartedtwohourslater，becautheyranfaster．At

night，thedogsmadewarmholesunderthesnow，buttheponiesstoodontopofthesnow．Itwas

－20°Centigrade．

AfterfifteendaysOatestalkedtoScott．Therewasastrongwind，andthetwomen'sfaceswere

whitewithsnow．

'Threeoftheponiesareill，Captain，'Oatessaid．'Theycan'tgoon．'

'Don'tbestupid，Oates，'Scottanswered．'They'regoodstronganimals—thebestponieson

earth．'

'Notthethree，'Oatessaid．'They'reill，andunhappy，andnowtheycan'twalk．Let'skill

them，andleavethemeathere，inthesnow．Wecaneatit，orthedogscan．'

第5页共14页

'Ofcournot！'Scottsaidangrily．'Theponiesareourfriends，theyworkhardforus．I

don'tkillmyfriends！'

Threedayslater，twooftheponiesweredead．

Scott'smenwereslowerthanAmundn's；ittookthemtwenty-fourdaystogetto

80°South．Theymadeabigdepotthere，andputonelargeblackflagontopofit．Thentheywent

backtoCapeEvans．

Theircampwasonanislandintheice，andtheaicemovedsometimes．Therewereholesin

theice，andblackawaterunderit．Onedayvenponieswentthroughtheiceintothea，and

died．Onemotorsledgealsowentintothea．

Chapter5ALongColdWinter

Itwasdarkforfourmonths．OutsidethewoodenhouatFramheim，itwasoften－

60°Centigrade．Thedogslivedinwarmholesunderthesnow．Themenstayedinthehou，and

workedintheirroomsunderthesnow．

TheskisandsledgescamefromthebestshopsinNorway，butBjaalandwasn'thappywith

them．Hechangedalotofthingsontheskisandsledges．Soonthesledgeswerestrongerthan

before．Theskiswerebetterandfaster，too．

AlltheNorwegiansworkedhard．Theylookedaftertheirdogs，andworkedontheirequipment

—thesledges，skis，tents．EverydaytheythoughtabouttheirjourneytothePole，andtalked

aboutit．Andeveryday，AmundnthoughtaboutScott．Oneday，inmidwinter，hetalkedtohis

men．

'Let'sstartearly，beforeScott，'Amundnsaid．'Remem-ber，Scotthasmorementhan

us，andhehasmotorsledges，too．Perhapstheycangofasterthanus．'

Bjaalandlaughed．'Ohno，theycan'tgofasterthanme，'hesaid．'Onsnow，nothingcango

fasterthanagoodmanonskis．'

'Wedon'tknow，'Amundnsaid．'You'rethebestskierinNorway，butyougettired，and

dogsgettired，too．Motorsledgesdon'tgettired．Theycangoalldayandallnight．'

Johannlaughedangrily．'That'sstupid，'hesaid．'Perhapsthemotorsledgescangoall

night，buttheEnglishmencan't．TheEnglishcan'twin，Roald—theydon'tunderstandsnow，but

wedo．Andthey'retooslow．'

'Perhaps，'Amundnsaid．'ButIwanttowinthisrace．Sowe'regoingtostartearly！Doyou

understand？'

ItwasquietandwarminsideFramheim．BjaalandlookedatAmundn，andthoughtaboutthe

long，coldjourneyinfrontofhim．Hethoughtaboutthedogsintheirholesunderthesnow，and

第6页共14页

listenedtothewindoverthehou．'When，Roald？'hesaidquietly．

'OnAugust24th．Thesuncomesbackonthatday．Westartthen．'

'Butwecan't！'Johannsaid．Helookedangry，andun-happy．'That'stooearly！Wecan't

startthen—it'sdanger-ousandstupid！'

AmundnlookedatJohanncoldly．'You'rewrong，Jo-hann，'hesaid．'Wewantto

win，remember？SowestartonAugust24th．'

Bjaalandlistenedtothewinterwindoutside．

*****

InScott'scamp，atCapeEvans，noonetalkedaboutAmundnandnooneworkedhard．They

hadgoodfood，andtheyplayedfootballonthesnow．Theywroteanewspaper—ThesouthPolar

Times—andreadbooks．Noonelearnttoski，nooneworkedonthemotorsledges．Twice，men

wentforlongjour-neysacrossthesnow．Theywalked，andpulledthesledgesthemlves．Oates

stayedatCapeEvansandlookedafterhisponies．

OverthewindowinCapeEvans，ScottputamapofAntarc-tica．Withapen，hemadealine

fromCapeEvanstotheSouthPole，andheputalittleBritisnFlagatthePole．Underthemap，Scott

wrotethedayforthestartoftheirjourney．

WestartonNovember3rd，hewrote．

Chapter6ABadStart

OnAugust23rd，theNorwegians'sledgeswereready．Theytookthemoutside，andthedogs

pulledthemacrossmeice．Thesuncameupforhalfanhour，butitwastoocold：－

46°Centigrade．Theycouldnottravelinthatweather．TheywentbacktoFramheimandwaited．

Theywaitedtwoweeks，untilSeptember8th．Then，withthetemperatureat－

37°Centigrade，theystarted．Theyranhappilyacrossthesnowtothesouth—eightmen，ven

sledges，andeighty-sixdogs．Only

Lindstrom，thecook，stayedbehindinFramheim．

Atfirsteverythingwentwell．Theywenttwenty-eightkilo-metresonSaturday，andtwenty-

eightkilometresonSunday．Itwaasy．Then，onMonday，thetemperaturewentdown—to－

56°Centigrade．Therewaswhitefoginfrontoftheirfaces．Theycouldn'teanything．Butthey

travelledtwenty-eightkilometres．

Thatnight，intheirtents，theynearlydiedofcold．Nextday，theystoppedandmadesnow

hous．Insidethesnowhous，itwaswarm．Buteveryonewasunhappy．

第7页共14页

'Itoldyou，Roald！'Johannsaid．'EvenSeptemberistooearly！Wecan'ttravelinthis

cold．Doyouwantustodie？Let'sgobackandwaitforbetterweather．'

Amundnwasveryangry．HewasangrywithJohann，buthewasangrywith

himlf，too．HeknewJohannwasright．

'Allright，'hesaidslowly．'Wecangoontothedepotat80°South，leavethefoodthere，and

thengoback．Wecan'tdomorethanthat．'

Itwasthirty-venkilometrestothedepot．Thewindwasintheirfacesallday．Twodogsdied

ontheway．Atthedepot，theydidnotstop．Theyputoutthefoodandtheflags，turned

round，andwentnorth．

Atlastthewindwasbehindthem．Thedogsranquickly，andthemensatontheempty

sledges．Theywentfasterandfaster．Itwaslikearace．AmundnwasonWisting'ssledge，and

soonhe，Wisting，andHansnwerethreeorfourkilometresinfront．Soontheywerealone．They

travelledventy-fivekilo-metresinninehours，andtheyreachedFramheimatfouro'clockthat

afternoon．

Bjaalandarrivedtwohourslater，withtwomoremen．Butthelasttwo—JohannandPrestrud

—wentmoreslowly．Theirdogsweretired，theirfeetwerewetandcold，theyhadnofood，and

theywerealoneinthedark．Thetemperaturewas－51°Centigrade．TheyreachedFramheimat

midnight．

Nextmorning，Johannwasangry．Infrontofeveryone，hesaid：'Youwere

wrong，Roald．Septemberwastooearly．Itoldyoubutyoudidn'tlisten．Andthenyouleftus

aloneandwenearlydiedinthecold！You'reabadcaptain—I'mabettercaptainthanyouare！'

Amundnwasveryangry．Butatfirsthesaidnothing，be-cauheknewthatJohannwas

right．Then，thatevening，hegavealettertoJohann．Itsaid：

Youaren'tcomingtothePolewithme．WhenIgosouth，youcantakesomedogsandgoeastto

KingEdwardⅦLand

．

YoucangowithPrestrudandStubberud

．

Youcanbethefirstmentogothere

—butnottotheSouthPole！

TheNorwegiansstayedinFramheimandwaited．Theylayinbed，listenedtothewind

outside，andthoughtaboutScottandhismotorsledges．

Chapter7MotorSledgesandMountains

Scotthadtwomotorsledgesnow．TheywerethefirstmotorsledgesintheAntarctic—thefirst

onearth．OnOctober24th，themotorsledgesstartedsouthfromCapeEvans．Fourmenwentwith

them，butScottstayedatCapeEvansforanotherweek．

Oateswasunhappy．Hewrotetohismother：Wehadaverybadwinterhere．Idon'tlike

第8页共14页

Scott．Wewerehereallwinter，buthedidn'tlearntoski，ortodrivedogs．Ourequipmentis

bad，andhedoesn'tthinkaboutotherpeople．I'mgoingtosleepinhistentonthejourney，butI

don'twantto．

OnNovemberlstScottandOatesandsixmoremenleftCapeEvanswitheightsledgesandeight

ponies．Theponieswalkedslowlybecautheirfeetwentdownintothesnow．Itwashardworkfor

themandtheygottiredveryquickly．Theytravelledthirteenorfourteenkilometresinaday．

BehindtheponiescameMeareswithonesledgeandsomedogs．Mearesknewhowtodrive

dogs．Everyday，Mearesstartedtwohoursaftertheponies，andarrivedtwohoursbe-forethem．

Afterfivedays，theyfoundthemotorsledges．

*****

TheNorwegiansbeganagainonOctober20th．Therewerefivementhistime—

Amundn，Bjaaland，Wisting，Hasl，andHansn．Theyhadfoursledges，andforty-eight

dogs．

Therewasalotofwindandfog．Onthefirstday，Wisting'ssledgesuddenlystopped，andthe

backwentdown．'Comeon，youdogs！'hesaidangrily．'Pull！Pull！'Atfirstnothinghap-pened；

then，slowly，thesledgemovedagain．Wistinglookeddown，overthesideofthesledge．Under

thesnow，therewasafiftymetrehole．

'Didyouethat？'Amundnsaid．'Theicewantstoeatus—

men，dogs，sledges，everything．'

Onthefourthdaytheyreachedthedepotat80°South．Therewasabadsnowstorm，butthey

foundtheflagasily．Nextdaythemenstayedintheirtents，andthedogsplayedintheirholes

underthesnow．Theywereallhappy．Theyhadalotoffood，theyhadgoodequipment，andthey

werewarm．Theycouldtravelfast．

Nextmorning，thesnowstormstopped，andthejourneybe-ganagain．Today，everythingis

wonderful，Bjaalandwroteinhisdiary．ButwhereisScott？Infrontofus，orbehind？

*****

Therewasnoonewiththemotorsledges；theywerebroken．Scottlookedatthemangrily．

'Itdoesn'tmatter，'hesaid．'TeddyEvansandhismenareinfrontofus．They'regoodmen—

they'repullingtheirsledgesthemlves．WecangettothePoleonfoot．'

OateslookedatMeares．Oatesandtheponiesweretired，butMearesandhisdogswere

not．Thesnowwashomeforthem．

Thatnight，Oateswrote：Threemotorsledgesat￡1，000each，19poniesat￡5each，32

dogsat￡1．50each．Well，it'snotmymoney，it'sScott's．

第9页共14页

OnNovember21st，oneoftheponiesdied．

*****

OnNovember11th，theNorwegianssawthemountains．

Themountainswereveryhigh—someofthehighestonearth．Bjaalandsmiled．

'Thereisgoodskiingupthere，Roald，'hesaid．'Butcandogsgetuptheretoo？'

'Ofcourtheycan，'Amundnsaid．'Comeon．'

TheyleftHansnwiththedogs，andskiedalittlewayupthemountains．Itwasdifficult，but

themountainswerebigandbeautiful．Behindthemountains，Amundnthoughttherewasahigh

plateauofice．'That'sit，'Amundnsaid．'That'stheroadtothePole．Tomorrow，wecanbring

thedogsandsledgesuphere．Butnow，let'shaveaskirace．Whocangetbacktocampfirst？'

Theylaughed，andskiedhappilydownthewhitesnow．'Thisislikehome，'Bjaaland

thought．'Butit'sbiggerthanNorway，andbetter．'

Inthenextfourdays，thedogspulledthesledgeighty-onekilometres，andwentup3，000

metres．Atlast，AmundnandBjaalandstoodontheplateaubehindthemountains．Theywere

tired，happymen．

Bjaalandlookedbackatthemountains．'Canamotorsledgegetuphere？'heasked．

Amundnsmiled．'No，'hesaid．'Idon'tthinkso．AndScottdoesn'tlikedogs．Sohismenare

goingtopulltheirsledgesupthemountainsthemlves．Wouldyouliketodothat，Olav？'

Bjaalanddidn'tanswer．Hesmiled，andskiedhappilyawayacrossthesnow．

Chapter8AcrossthePlateau

OnNovember21st，theNorwegianskilledthirtydogs．'Theywerehappy，'Amundn

said．'Andnowtney'regoingtodiequickly．Weneedthreesledges，andeighteendogs，togoto

thePole．'

Whenthedogsweredead，theotherdogsatethem．Themenatethem，too．Theyweregood

friends，Bjaalandwroteinhisdiary．Andnowtheyaregoodfood．Twodayslater，thedogswere

fst．Then，inasnowstorm，theybeganthejourneyagain．

Afterthesnowstorm，therewasfog，andinthefog，theygotlostonaniceriverwithhundreds

ofbigholesinit．Theycouldenothing，anditwasverydangerous．Infourdaystheymovednine

kilometres．Buttheiceisbeautiful，Bjaalandwrote．Blueandgreenandwhite．Thisisawonderful

place—butIdon'twanttostayalongtime．

Aftertheice，therewerestrongwindsandbadsnowstorms．Theycouldenothinginfrontof

第10页共14页

them．Buteveryday，theytravelledtwenty-fiveorthirtykilometres．Then，onDecember9th，the

suncameout

．

Theywereat88°23′South—175kilo-metresfromthePole

．

Fivemorelongdays，Bjaalandwrote．That'sallnow．ButwhereisScott？

*****

Forfourdays，Scott'smenstayedintheirtentsnearthemountains．Thereisabadsnowstorm

outside，Oateswrote．It'stoocoldfortheponies，andourclothesandskisarebad，too．

OnDecember9th，Oateskilledtheponies．Theyweretiredandillandtheycouldnotwalkupto

theplateau．ThenMearesandhisdogswentbacktoCapeEvans．'Wecanpullthesledges

ourlves，'Scottsaid．'Wecandoit—we'reallstrongmen．

Thereweretwosledgesandeightmen．Theywenttwenty-fourkilometresaday．OnDecember

31st，ScottsaidtoTeddyEvans，andthemenonthecondsledge：'Youcan'tskiwell．Leaveyour

skishere．'Sotheypulledtheirsledgetwenty-fourkilometreswithoutskis．

Nextday，ScottwenttoTeddyEvans'stent．'Youareill，Teddy，'hesaid．'Youcan'tcometo

thePole．Taketwomenandgoback，tomorrow．'

TeddyEvanswasveryunhappy．'Twomen，Captain？'hesaid．'Whynotthree？'

'BecauBowersisgoingtocomewithme，'Scottsaid．'He'sstrong—weneedhim．'

'But…youhavefoodonyoursledgeforfourmen，notfive！'Evanssaid．'AndBowershasno

skis！'

'I'mtheCaptain，Teddy！'Scottsaid．'YoudowhatIsay．TaketwomenandleaveBowerswith

me！'

Oateswrotetohismother：IamgoingtothePolewithScott．IampleadandIfellstrong．But

inhisdiaryhewrote；Myfeetareverybad．Theyarealwayswetnow，andtheydon'tlookgood．

OnJanuary4thScott'smenleftTeddyEvansandwenton．Scott，Oates，WilsonandEdgar

Evanshadskis，butBowersdidnot．Theywere270kilometresfromthePole．

*****

December14th1911wasawarm，sunnyday．FiveNorwegiansskiedoverthebeautifulwhite

snow．Itwasveryquiet．Noonespoke．Theywereexcited，andhappy．

'Sixmorekilometres，'Bjaalandthought．IsthereaBritishflag？Ican'teaflag，but…

'Look！'Haslsaid．'What'sthatoverthere？'

Bjaalandlefthissledgeandskiedquicklyawayoverthesnow．'Whatisit？'hethought．'Is

it…？No！'

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'It'snothing！'hecalled．'There'snothingthere…no-thing！'

Threekilometres，two．'Roald！'HansncalledtoAmund-n．'Goinfrontofme，plea．It

helpsmydogs．'

'That'snottrue，'Bjaalandthought．'Hisdogsarerunningwelltoday．ButHansnwants

Amundntobefirst．ThefirstmanattheSouthPole！'

Theyskiedonandon，overthebeautifulsnow．

'Stop！'Amundnsaid．Hewaitedquietlyforhismen．'Thisisit，'hesaid．

Bjaalandlookedathim．'Butthere'snothinghere，'hesaid．

Amundnsmiled．'Ohyesthereis，'hesaid．'There'ssomethingveryimportant

here，Olav．Very，veryimportant．'

'What'sthat，Roald？'

'Us．We'reherenow．Isn'tthatimportant，Olav？'

Thefourmenstoodonthesnow，andlookedathim．Then，slowly，theyallbegantolaugh．

Chapter9TheEndoftheRace

TheNorwegiansstayedtwodaysatthePole．Theyleftatentthere，withaNorwegianflagon

it．Insidethetent，theyleftsomefood，aletterfortheKingofNorway，andalet-terforScott．

TheyleftsomemoreblackflagsnearthePole，andonetwenty-eightkilometresnorth．Then

theyskiedaway，backtothenorth．

It'sabeautifulday，Bjaalandwrote．Thesuniswarm，thesnowisgood．Butthedogsruntoo

quickly—Ican'tgetinfront，ofthem！

Theyfoundtheirdepotasily．ThereweretenbetweenthePoleandFramheim．Eachdepot

hadalotoffood．Theylaughedandskiedquicklydownthemountains．Often，theyskiedfifty

kilometresaday．OnFriday，January26th，1912，theycamebacktoFramheim．Itwasfour

o'clockinthemorn-ing．

Insidethewoodenhou，Lindstrm，thecook，wasasleep．Amundnwalkedquietlyto

hisbed．'Goodmorning，Lindstrm，'hesaid．'Isourcoffeeready？'

*****

TheblackflagswaitedatthePole．

'What'sthat，Captain？'Bowerssaid．'Overthere？'

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'Where？'Scottasked．'What—ohmyGod！'

Theyallsawmesmallblackflaginthesnow，twokilome-tresinfrontofthem．Slowly，they

pulledtheirsledgetoit．

Nextday，January17th1912，theyfoundthetentandtheNorwegianfiag．Nearit，Scotttook

theBritishflagfromunderhisclothes，andputitup．Inhisdiary，Scottwrote：Thisisaverybad

day．Wearealltired，andhavecoldfeetandhands．Itis－30°Centigradeandthereisa

snowstorm．GreatGod！Thisisanawfulplace！

Theyturnednorth．Fivetired，unhappymen，inthecoldest，emptiestplaceonearth．

*****

OnMarch13th，1912，Scott'swifeKathleen，lookedathermorningnewspaper．NORWAY'S

FLAGATSOUTHPOLE，itsaid．Shelookedatitforalongtime，andthenbegantocry．

'What'sthematter？'herfriendasked．

'Mypoor，poorhusband，'MrsScottsaid．'What'shappenedtohim？Whereishenow？'

*****

Scott'smenwerealwayshungry．Therewerenotmanydepotsandtheyweredifficultto

find．Weneedtofindthenextdepottoday，Oateswrote．Buthowcanwefindoneblackflaginall

thissnow？It'sverydifficult．Andthereisfoodforfourmen，notfive．

Theywerealltiredandill，too．Oates'sfeetwereblacknow，andhecouldnotfeelthem．On

February16th，EdgarEvansdied．

Onthe17ththeywerepastthemountains．Atthedepottheretheyateoneofthedead

ponies．Thentheywenton—ten，eleven，twelvekilometresaday．Theywereillbecautheir

clotheswerenotwarmandtheydidn'thavemuchfood．Thetemperaturewassometimes－

40°Centigrade．

OnMarch7thScottlookedatOates'sfeet．Theywerebigandblack．'Ican'tpullthesledge

now，'Oatessaid．'It'sverydifficulttowalk．AmIgoingtolothefeet，Captain？'

ScottlookedatOates'sfeet，andsaidnothing．

OnMarch9ththeyfoundanotherdepot，buttherewasnotmuchfood．Slowly，theywalked

on．Oates'sfeetwereworeveryday．

March17thwasOates'sbirthday．Hewasthirty-two．Helayinthetentandlistenedtothewind

outside．Hewasverycold，veryhungry，andveryverytired．

HewrotealettertohismotherandgaveittoWilson．Thenhegotup，andopenedthedoorof

thetent．Hestoppedinthedoorforaminute．Scott，Wilson，andBowerslookedathim．They

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didn'tspeak．

'I'mgoingoutsideforaminute，'Oatessaid．'Imaybesometime．'

Theydidn'tehimagain．

*****

AtCapeEvans，theEnglishmenwaited．OnDecember11th，Mearesandthedogscame

back．OnJanuary3rd，TeddyEvansandhistwomenarrivedatCapeEvans．TheTerraNova

came，andwent．Winterbegan．Scottdidnotcome．

TheEnglishmenwaitedallwinteratCapeEvans．Then，onOctober26th1912，theystartedfor

thesouth．Twoweekslater，theyfoundatent．

Therewerethreebodiesinthetent—Scott，Wilson，andBowers．Theyputthebodiesunder

thesnow．Thentheytookthemen'slettersanddiaries，andwentnorthtoCapeEvansagain．

InScott'sdiarytheyread：OatesdiedlikeagoodEnglish-man．Wealldid．Plea，remember

us，andlookafterourfamilies．Wedidourbest．

NoonefoundOates'sbody．Butheisthere，somewhere，un-derthesnowandthewind，inthe

coldest，emptiestplaceonearth．

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