Advertising Stage IV AAE page 1

Mawson’s Huts
Foundation
Philatelic items produced to commemorate:
THE CENTENARY OF THE AUSTRALASIAN
ANTARCTIC EXPEDITION 1911-14
Stage IV (AAT stamps & minisheets)
A). Wireless Communication between Macquarie Island
& Cape Denison.
B). Mawson, Ninnis & Mertz’s Far Eastern Journey
& S.Y. Aurora’s second Antarctic voyage.
Belgrave Ninnis
Xavier Mertz
Stage IV (AAT stamps & minisheets)
The latest philatelic items in this promotion from the Mawson’s Huts Foundation commemorate some of the important
events that occurred during the Australasian Antarctic Expedition in the period from 25th September 1912 to 15th March
1913. Unfortunately, it was not possible for the Foundation to mount an Expedition to Cape Denison during the 2012-2013
season because, as explained by Rob Easther (the Expedition Manager) on page 6 of The Blizzard (2013), a giant iceberg
has blocked Commonwealth Bay preventing ships getting closer than 20 km from the Huts. (If you did not receive a copy of
this issue of The Blizzard please let me know and I will send you one). As a consequence the Cape Denison Post Office did
not open during the 2012-13 season and no covers were postmarked with either of the Cape Denison postmarks. So as to
provide collectors with some philatelic items, which commemorate events that featured Mawson and his fellow
expeditioners, who were in the Cape Denison party, we have produced a quantity of numbered, overprinted minisheets.
To commemorate events that took place at the other two
AAE Bases, we were able to have covers serviced on
important dates by Postmasters at Macquarie Island and
Casey Stations; the latter being the closest Australian
Antarctic Station to the Shackleton Iceshelf (Western
Base). The three Postmasters involved were Dr Mel Van
Twest and Greg Bird at Macquarie Island, and Abrar
Shabren at Casey. During the 2011-12 season Philip
Marthick was Postmaster at Casey, and his excellent
postmarking was evident on the Stage 3 covers, which
were postmarked at Casey on 15 February 2012. A big
thank you is due to these Postmasters who did an
excellent job and took the time to apply relevant cachets
to the reverse of the covers.
We are also indebted to Jason Jones, Postmaster at
Kingston Post Shop (Tasmania 7050), for his excellent
postmarking of covers featuring the AAT Mountains
stamps, on 12 March 2013 (National FDI postmark) and
15 March 2013 (Kingston everyday pictorial postmark).
Dr Mel Van Twest, Postmaster at Macquarie Island Station in 2012.
Greg Bird, Postmaster at Macquarie Island Station for the 2012-13 season.
Abrar Shabren, Postmaster at Casey Station for the 2012-13 season.
Philip Marthick (foreground), Postmaster at Casey Station for the 2011-12
season.
Kingston Post Shop, Tasmania 7050
A). Wireless Communication between Macquarie Island & Cape Denison.
The establishment of the AAE’s wireless relay station at Macquarie Island and the recovery and conservation of the
remains of the wireless masts on the Island in April 2011 were the subjects of two earlier philatelic promotions by the
Foundation, namely No. 3 (Minisheets) and No. 5 (Masts). The B&W postcards featuring the Macquarie Island Wireless
Relay Station 1911-14 are also featured in No. 8 (Postcards) see:
http://www.petespolarplace.com/mawsons-huts-minisheets.htm, which has virtually sold out,
http://www.petespolarplace.com/mawsons-huts-masts.htm, overprinted minisheets and postcards are still available &
http://www.petespolarplace.com/mawsons-huts-postcards.htm postcards and DVD are still available.
To commemorate important dates in the establishment of radio contact between Macquarie Island and Cape Denison at
the time of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition three different covers have been produced. These covers are being
offered either on their own or with the set of B&W Macquarie Island postcards mentioned above. A cover + a set of
postcards attracts a $5.00 discount. An example of a postcard (No. 6) is shown at the bottom left of the next page.
Cover 1. Commemorates the Centenary of the receipt at Macquarie Island wireless station of the
first radio transmission from Cape Denison on 25 September 1912.
The first radio contact made by the Macquarie Island station was with a ship on 13 Feb 1912, and by 12 May 1912 the
team began sending daily weather bulletins to NZ; these continue to this day to Australia. In Chapter 26 of Mawson
(1915b), G F Ainsworth states that “We heard sounds from Adelie Land wireless station for the first time on September 25,
1912, but the signals were very faint and all we could receive was: ‘Please inform Pennant Hills’ (Sydney). Sawyer (A J,
whose photograph is on the cover) called them repeatedly for several hours, but heard no acknowledgement. Every effort
was made to get in touch with them from this time forward, Sawyer remaining at the instrument until daylight every
morning.”
‘Pennant Hills’ refers to the Australian government’s large wireless communication station, which is located 14 miles from
downtown Sydney. The first spark gap wireless transmitter installed at this location was manufactured by Telefunken in
Germany and it was listed as a 25 kW unit, though the power in the antenna was only 8 kW. This transmitter was
inaugurated on August 19, 1912. While this is only a month or so before the first wireless message was received at
Macquarie Island it is more than likely that Walter Hannam, the wireless operator at Cape Denison, would have known
that there was a wireless station to be built at Pennant Hills. Walter was very active in the radio activities at the time.
Cover No. 1 was affixed with the 2011 AAT
Centenary of the AAE se-tenant stamps and
cancelled at the Post Office on Macquarie Island
Station on 25 September 2012 by the Postmaster, Dr
Mel Van Twest, who also signed the backs of the
covers and applied some of the cachets. In addition,
the Postmaster brought the covers with her when
she returned to Australia by way of the Spirit of
Enderby, which departed Macquarie Island on 28
December 2012 and arrived in Dunedin, NZ on 8
January 2013. She subsequently travelled by Air
from Dunedin to Melbourne on 8 January 2013, and
hand delivered the covers to me in Melbourne on 21
January 2013.
Cover No. 1
6. The Telefunken wireless system supplied by Amalgamated Wireless
Australasia (AWA) in Wireless Hut on Macquarie Island. The same system
was installed by the AAE’s main base at Cape Denison.
(AAE collection at the Mitchell Library, NSW State Library)
Reverse of covers
Covers 2 & 3. Commemorate the Centenary of the first two-way radio communication between Cape
Denison & Macquarie Island on 20 February 1913.
The colour cachets (pictures) on the fronts of the covers are images of oil paintings by Brisbane artist Peter J Anderson,
who personally signed all the covers. The picture on cover No. 2 is based on a photograph of the masts and radio shack
taken in 1912, and the picture on cover No. 3 shows the remnants of the Oregon Pine masts on top of Wireless Hill before
they were recovered by the Foundation in 2011. The remnants of the masts are now being conserved by the Tasmanian
Museum and Art Gallery in Hobart. (See page 3 of The Blizzard 2013).
In Chapter 27 of Mawson (1915b), G F Ainsworth states that: “On the 20th (February, 1913) an event occurred to which we
had long looked forward, and which was now eagerly welcomed. Communication was established with the Main Base in
Adelie Land by wireless! A message was received from Dr Mawson confirming the deaths of Ninnis and Mertz, and
stating that the Aurora had not picked up the whole party. Sawyer had a short talk with Jeffryes, the Adelie Land
(wireless) operator, and among other scraps of news told him we were all well.”
In Chapter 23 of Mawson (1915b), Mawson’s account of this momentous event is somewhat different and he states that:
“On the night of February 15 (1913), Jeffryes suddenly surprised us with the exciting news that he had heard Macquarie
Island send a coded weather report to Hobart. The engine was immediately set going, but though repeated attempts were
made, no answer could be elicited. Each night darkness was more pronounced and signals became more distinct until on
the 20th, our call reached Sawyer at Macquarie Island, who immediately responded by saying “Good Evening.” The
insulation of a Leyden jar broke down at this point, and nothing could be done until it was remedied.
At last on February 21, signals were exchanged, and by the 23rd a message had been dispatched to Lord Denman,
Governor General of the Commonwealth, acquainting him with our situation and the loss of our comrades, and through
him, one to his Majesty the King requesting permission to name a tract of newly discovered country to the east, “King
George V Land.” Special messages were also sent to the relatives of Lieutenant B. E. S. Ninnis and Dr X. Mertz.”
Despite the discrepancies between these two accounts it is evident that 20th February 1913 was the day that two-way
radio communication was established between Cape Denison and Macquarie Island, however brief it may have been!
Cover Nos 2 & 3 were affixed with the 2012 AAT
Centenary of the AAE se-tenant strip of five stamps, which
were taken from the minisheet. The stamps in this issue
were of two different denominations, i.e., 3 x 60¢ and 2 x
$1.20, so they only occurred as a se-tenant strip in the
minisheet. They were cancelled at the Post Office on
Macquarie Island Station on 20 February 2013 by the
Postmaster, Greg Bird, who also signed the backs of the
covers and applied some of the cachets. The covers were
carried on board the Aurora Australis, which departed
Macquarie Island on 11 March 2013, following the annual
resupply, and arrived in Hobart on 14 March 2013, from
where they were sent by mail to Melbourne.
Cover No.2
Reverse of covers
Cover No. 3
Replica of the Wireless set used by Douglas Mawson’s 1911-14 Australasian Antarctic Expedition
In 2013 John Gillies published a booklet entitled “Building a replica of the Wireless set used by Douglas Mawson’s 191114 Australasian Antarctic Expedition.” It was based on papers he had written for the Historical Radio Society of Australia,
which were published in their journal Radio Waves, in the issues of: April, 2012; July, 2012; and October, 2012. For
those of you with access to Aurora (Journal of the ANARE Club, refer list of References) see papers by John Gillies
(2008, 2012).
John Gillies has an interest in the wireless systems used in the Antarctic, having worked for the Australian Antarctic
Division as a radio technician. John ‘wintered’ at Mawson station in Antarctica for a year, in 1967, and returned to
Antarctica for a second year, to the new Casey station in 1969.
In 2004, John had seen a scale model, of Douglas Mawson’s main Commonwealth Bay Huts made by past expeditioner
Rod Mackenzie, OAM. The model had details of the Huts’ interior, and was displayed at a function to celebrate the 50
years of Mawson station in Antarctica. It renewed John’s interest in the early wireless systems used in Antarctica, and he
started enquiring about the fate of the original wireless used by Douglas Mawson’s expedition (see right hand picture of
the wireless operator in action at Cape Denison in 1912 on the next page). Following a visit to Mawson’s Huts in 2005,
which further fired his enthusiasm, he began a search for material about the AAE wireless, and suggested to the
Australian National Antarctic Research Expeditions Club (ANARE Club), that he should build a replica of the wireless set.
The ANARE Club, a group of past and present expeditioners who have worked for the Australian Antarctic Division,
agreed and decided that the replica was to be the Club’s contribution to celebrations of the Centenary of the AAE,
especially the first wireless communications made by the Expedition from the Antarctic continent in 1912.
In 2008, John visited Europe, where, in the German Museum of Technology in Berlin, he was able to see old catalogues,
which included details to assist him in building a faithful reproduction of the German Telefunken wireless set. The replica
was completed in 2011, and has been displayed at various venues, including a Mawson’s Huts Foundation seminar in
Hobart, Tasmania, Australia, in April, 2011 (see left hand picture on the next page). It was also displayed at an Antarctic
Display in Osborne House, Geelong in late May/June, 2012. Presently, the replica is on display at the Mawson Centre at
the South Australia Museum. However, as soon as the full-scale replica of Mawson’s Huts (see page 1 of The Blizzard
2013) is completed and erected on a waterfront site adjacent to Mawson’s Place and Constitution Dock in Hobart, John
Gillies will transport the replica of the wireless set from the South Australia Museum to Hobart and install it in the Huts.
Chairman/CEO David Jensen AM of the Mawson’s Huts Foundation plans to officially open the replica of the Huts on
2 December 2013, which will be the 102nd anniversary of the departure from Hobart of the 1911-14 Australasian Antarctic
Expedition (AAE) led by Douglas Mawson.
For up-to-date news about the replicas and other goings on at the Foundation go to:
http://www.mawsons-huts.org.au/latest-news/
John Gillies (left) and David Jensen, Chief Executive Officer of the
Mawson’s Huts Foundation (right), with the completed replica of the
Telefunken wireless set, at a Mawson’s Huts Foundation seminar in
Hobart, Tasmania, Australia, in April, 2011.
Photograph by permission of Anthea Wallhead.
Walter Hannam at the wireless set, which was installed in the Hut’s
workshop at Cape Denison in 1912.
Photograph by Frank Hurley
Image by permission Mitchell Library, State Library of NSW
B). Mawson, Ninnis & Mertz’s Far Eastern Journey
& S.Y. Aurora’s second Antarctic voyage.
In this section there are four overprinted minisheets and four covers. The former were necessary, firstly because as
mentioned earlier Cape Denison Post Office did not open during the 2012-13 season and no covers cancelled with either
of the Cape Denison postmarks were produced. Thus to commemorate some of the events that took place at Cape
Denison and during Mawson’s Far Eastern Journey three different numbered, overprinted minisheets have been
produced. Secondly, SY Aurora sailed from Hobart on Boxing Day in 1912, and it was not possible to have covers
cancelled on that Day in 2012 as the Hobart GPO was not open. The minisheet used for all four items was the 2012 AAT
Centenary of the AAE minisheet issued on 4 September 2012.
Minisheet No 1. (Nos 001-100): Mawson, Mertz & Ninnis set out on the Far Eastern Journey.
10th November 1912: Mawson, Merttz and Ninnis + 17 dogs and three sledges set out from the Base Camp at Cape
Denison on the Far Eastern Journey. On this expedition the total load of supplies and equipment, including the three
sledges, was just over 1724 pounds. Details of what was taken and the names of the dogs have been listed in Chapter 12
of Mawson (1915a).
An interesting and well-researched account of the lead up to, and the departure of, the six journeys (expeditions) to the
South, East and West of Cape Denison that were mounted by members of the AAE in November 1912 can be found in
Chapter 15 of Riffenburgh (2011). The author draws on not only on Mawson’s account in Home of the Blizzard but many
other sources including the diaries and letters of members of the expedition.
Ninnis (fp 238 Mawson, 1915a)
From page 226 of Riffenburgh (2011): In a rather prophetic statement in his diary written on the
night before they left Ninnis wrote “I must close my writing now, maybe for two months, maybe for
good and all for who knows what may happen during the next two months.” His thoughts were not
uncommon in advance of a long sledging trip. Mawson in fact was feeling something similar. “I
am writing this note in case anything may happen which will prevent me reaching you as soon as
the mail from here, which is expected to be picked up next January” he wrote to Paquita. “So
many things may intervene for one truly lives but day to day here and then our sledge journey is
about to commence.” The next morning he was positive, but still realistic. “The weather is fine
this morning though the wind still blows,” he wrote. “We shall get away in an hour’s time. I have
two good companions, Dr Mertz and Lieut. Ninnis. It is unlikely that any harm will happen to us but
should I not return to you in Australia please know that I truly loved you. I must close now as the
others are waiting.”
Those others were in the best of spirits when they saw Mawson and company off. Mertz had treated
everyone to penguin egg omlettes, of which he was the acknowledged master. Shortly after noon,
they dashed off, the 17 dogs having ‘almost too much strength.’ Indeed a short while before, when
Hurley set up the cinematograph to film them, they were attached to the sledge before it was fully
loaded, and so energetic were they that they bolted forward suddenly, damaging the sledge meter.
Once on the move, they were able to reach Aladdin’s Cave by mid afternoon, where they were joined
briefly by the members of the Southern Party, who, after a quick meal moved on. Mawson’s team,
meanwhile, reorganised their sledge loads. On the way up the steep, hard–pitted glacier ice from
Winter Quarters, they had carried a third sledge on the second in order to save its runners for future
use. Now taking additional supplies from Aladdin’s Cave, they distributed the weight totalling 1723
pounds (781 kg), dividing approximately half the load on two sledges that would be pulled in tandem
by the first dog team and the other half on the third sledge, pulled by the other team.
Mertz & Basilisk (photogaph by Charles Laseron, by permission Mitchell Library, State Library of NSW)
Minisheet No 2. (Nos 101-200): The deaths of Ninnis & Mertz on the Far Eastern Journey.
Two tragic events occurred during the Far Eastern Journey: On 14th December 1912 the Far Eastern Party had
reached a distance of 311 miles east of Cape Denison. They were travelling in a south-easterly direction; Mertz is in front
on skis, with Mawson 30 yards behind on the lightly packed first sledge, pulled by the weakest dogs. Ninnis brings up the
rear another 40 yards back, with the heavily packed sledge and the strongest dogs. A warning about crevasses was
given by Mertz, which was confirmed by Mawson who shouts a warning to Niinis. The Englishman immediately swings
the leading dogs around to cross any hidden crevasse front on – to minimise his time on the dangerous part. Mawson
continues on until he becomes aware that Mertz has stopped and is looking back to a point behind him. Mawson turns
around to see what is up with Ninnis and Ninnis is not there. Mawson runs back hoping he will see Ninnis or his sledge
but there is nothing until he comes upon a crevasse that has broken in, ‘a gaping hole in the surface about 11 ft wide.’
Mawson looks over the edge, but all he can see is a dark abyss, with just one ledge visible 150 ft below upon which he
can see two dogs, one dead and the other barely moving, and some items of equipment. For some hours both he and
Mertz call down into the depths for Ninnis but there is only silence. After a while they realize that their companion is dead
and that they have also lost their best dogs, all of the dog food, most of their own food, their tent as well as crucial items
such as their spade, ice axe and Mertz’s windproof Burberry trousers. Fortunately, they do have some kerosene, a
Primus stove, a tent cover and their sleeping bags amongst the items on the first sledge.
There is no question they must turn back – immediately! It is time to discard whatever is not absolutely necessary to their
survival, bar the records they have taken, as it is unthinkable to discard their whole raison d’etre for this journey. As to
food, there is just enough on the surviving sledge to keep them alive for 11-12 days for a journey they calculate could take
them 35 days. For food for the dogs they have next to nothing other than the dogs themselves. As the dogs weaken they
will have to be shot and fed to the other dogs and to themselves. Before they set off they stand at the edge of the
crevasse, their uncovered heads bowed and Mawson slowly intones the burial service.
Their first objective is to retrace their steps to the 12 December campsite, where they can salvage some abandoned gear
from the damaged third sledge, including a broken shovel, which may now prove invaluable. They cover the distance (24
miles) to the campsite in five and a half hours. Upon arrival Mertz immediately sets about removing a runner from the
broken sledge and breaking it in half. The two pieces plus his two skis will form the stanchions necessary to form the
framework of a tepee upon which they can put the spare tent cover to provide shelter.
They decide to return to Winter Quarters via the inland route rather than by way of the coast. While the latter would
provide opportunities to shoot seals for food, the former is shorter and has fewer crevasses. They started well enough but
night after night of sheer exhaustion, stumbling, pressing on, resting briefly, shooting a dog, eating it (including the liver),
and moving on again, with the loss of each dog meaning that they must take progressively more of the weight of hauling
the sledge, all while they and the remaining dogs become increasingly exhausted and thin. By Christmas Eve the two
exhausted men reached the middle of the second glacier they crossed after leaving Winter Quarters, leaving them still 160
miles to go. They plod on and by 28 December are still 135 miles away from the Hut. They are both feeling ill but are not
sure what they are suffering from, only that it is getting worse. On New Year’s day Mertz notes in his diary that the
problem is due to the dog meat, which does not agree with him. He later admits to Mawson that he has been getting
terrible abdominal pain and two days later Mertz’s strength appears to be all but gone and he is incapable of pulling his
weight. By 6 January Mertz is so weak that Mawson offers him a lift on the sledge but after only a short way Mertz
becomes so freezing cold that they are forced to pitch camp. On 7 January Mertz is incapable of movement and nearing
midnight he has some kind of fit requiring Mawson to hold him down until after midnight when Mertz becomes calm. At
2.00 am on 8th January 1913 Mawson awakens and notes that Mertz is notably still. He reaches out and touches
Mertz’s face. It is not just cold but frozen. Mertz has breathed his last.
In the evening of 8 January 1913 Mawson buries Mertz in a grave constructed with snow blocks, however he is too
physically and mentally exhausted to read the burial service, which he does the next day. Having cut his sledge in half
and re-organised his gear he proceeds on the hazardous 97-mile journey to the Huts.
Sources of information about these tragic events include Chapters 12 & 13 of Mawson (1915a), Chapter 13 of
Fitzsimmons (2011), and Chapters 15 & 18 of Riffenburgh (2011).
Minisheet No 3. (Nos 301-400): The departure of the SY Aurora on the second Antarctic Voyage
26 December 1912: SY Aurora departed Hobart for Cape Denison and the Western Base.
The purpose of this voyage was to retrieve the AAE Expeditioners from the two Antarctic Bases at Cape Denison and the
Shackleton Iceshelf. On this voyage, which left from Hobart on 26 December 1912, the SY Aurora travelled between
9,000 -10,000 km. The approximate distance between Hobart and Commonwealth Bay (Cape Denison) is 2473 km;
between Commonwealth Bay and Mirny is 2226 km (the Russian Antarctic Station is approximately 100 km West of the
Shackleton Ice Shelf); and between Mirny and Hobart is 4181 km. Mirny Station is closer to the Shackleton Ice Shelf than
Casey Station.
Following the completion of the second deep-sea cruise the SY Aurora arrived in Hobart just before noon on 14 December
1912 and immediately began preparations for the voyage to the Antarctic. In Chapter 18, pages 32-33, of Mawson
(1915a), Captain John King Davis continues the story: “On December 24, 1912, preparations for sailing were complete.
For ten days every one connected with the Aurora had been working at high pressure, and Christmas Day, our last day
ashore, was to be celebrated as a well-earned holiday.
There was on board a good supply of coal, five hundred and twenty-one tons, and a heavy mail of letters and packages
for the members of the Expedition who had been isolated in the far South for more than twelve months. We were to take
thirty-five live sheep on board as well as twenty-one dogs, presented by Captain Amundsen upon his return from his
South Polar expedition. Captain James Davis, of Hobart, of long whaling experience, was to accompany us to give an
expert opinion upon such whales as we might meet. Mr Van Waterschoot van der Gracht, who had had previous
experience in the Antarctic, joined as marine artist, and Mr. S. N. Jeffryes as wireless operator. With C. C. Eitel, Secretary
of the Expedition, the whole party on board numbered twenty-eight.
A very pleasant Christmas was spent ashore. The ship’s company of twenty-three men met for dinner, and we did not
forget to wish a “Merry Christmas” to our leader and his twenty-six comrades who were holding their celebration amid the
icy solitudes of Antarctica. I was glad on this occasion, to be able to congratulate officers and men on their willing and
loyal service during the previous twelve months; every one had done his best to advance the objects of the Expedition.
The attractions of Hobart, at this season, are so numerous, and Tasmanian hospitality so boundless, that it gives me great
pleasure to place on record that every man was at his post on the Aurora at 10 A.M. on Boxing Day.
As we drew away from the wharf amid the cheers of those who had come to wish us God-speed, the weather was perfect
and the scene on the Derwent bright and cheering. Captain James Davis acted as pilot.
At 11.30 A.M we had embarked the twenty-one dogs, which were brought off from the Quarantine station, and were
steaming down Storm Bay. Outside there was a heavy swell, and the wind was freshening from the west. The course
was laid south 50° west, true.”
Minisheet No 4. (Nos 201-300): SY Aurora departed Cape Denison and Mawson returned on the same day
8th February 1913: SY Aurora departed Cape Denison at 11.30 am & Mawson returned to the Huts later the same day.
The second Antarctic voyage of the S.Y. Aurora, which departed Hobart on 26 Dec. 1912 & returned to Hobart on 15 Mar. 1913, is described
in Davis (2007), which together with Fitzsimmons (2011) and Mawson (1915a), are the prime sources of information for what is written here.
The S.Y. Aurora arrived at Cape Denison on 13 Jan. 1913. The first items taken ashore were the mail and fresh fruit.
Three sledging parties had yet to return but on 16 Jan. the Eastern Party arrived followed by the Western Party on 18 Jan.
A letter left by Mawson stated that if he had not returned by 15 Jan. Davis was to take charge, and he immediately
ordered that the wireless mast, which had blown down in October, be repaired. By 21 Jan., with Mawson 6 days overdue,
Davis posted a provisional notice in the Huts that it was necessary to establish a Relief Expedition to remain for another
year. He appointed Bage, Bickerton, Hodgeman, Jeffryes & Dr McLean as members with Madigan in command. A party
sent to search the vicinity of Aladdin’s Cave (5.5 miles distant) returned on 24 Jan. & reported no trace of the Far Eastern
party. A second search party departed on 27 Jan. to make a search south-east of Aladdin’s Cave but to no avail (*see
below). By 28 Jan. all supplies & fuel that could be spared from ship’s stores had been brought ashore, & the wireless
was working. Bad weather, which had kept Aurora at sea for several days, abated by 8 February and at 9.00 am she
sailed towards boat harbour to embark the returning members. Aurora left Commonwealth Bay at 11.30 am, but at 8.30
pm received a wireless message that Mawson had returned & that they return to pick up all hands. The Aurora turned
back towards the Huts, but the weather deteriorated so much that Captain Davis decided to resume the voyage westward.
Mawson’s perilous 97-mile solo journey to the Huts
commenced on 9 Jan. 2013 and took 31 days to complete.
The journey has been re-enacted in a DVD by the ABC
(2012), see page 3 in The Blizzard (2013). Having survived
atrocious weather, numerous falls down crevasses,
nutritional deprivation, failing health and physical
exhaustion, on 29 Jan. Mawson spies through the drifting
snow something dark up ahead, it is a snow cairn. Wound
around the snow blocks is some black cloth on top of which
is a distinctive red ‘Paquita’ food bag. Inside the bag as well
as food are a couple of notes one of which gives him his
exact bearings, and the direction to Aladdins Cave 21 miles
away. Ironically the bag had been left just 6 hours earlier by
the search party*, comprising Hodgeman, Hurley & McLean.
After two days of blizzard Mawson eventually makes it to the
Cave, where he is again held up by the weather until 8
February when he sets off for the Huts. Within sight of the
Huts he also sees Aurora steaming westward!
Reasons Captain Davis proceeded to the Western Base
(1) Dr Mawson and his comrades were safely housed and
fully equipped for the coming winter.
(2) Any further delay was seriously endangering our chances
of being able to relieve Mr Wild’s party this season. The
navigation to the Western Base (1,500 miles distant) was
becoming daily more difficult on account of the increasing
length of the nights and the conditions of the ice.
(3) The only vessel, The Gauss, that had wintered in the
vicinity of Wild’s Base had been frozen in on February 22nd.
The Aurora was not provisioned for a winter in the ice.
(4) From the records at the Main Base, it had been
ascertained that gales often lasted for many days at the
close of the short summer season. We had just weathered
ONE, lasting seven days.
(5) As a seaman, I realised the difficulties encountered
approaching Wild’s Base in 1912; and also in getting away
from it. It was now THREE WEEKS LATER in the year.
Cover Nos 4 & 5: Centenary of the retrieval of the Western
Base Party from the Shackleton Ice Shelf - 23 February
1913
Cover Nos 4 & 5 were affixed with the 2012 AAT Centenary of
the AAE se-tenant pair of $1.20 stamps, which depict the
arrival of the AAE at the Western Base in 1912. The covers,
with stamps affixed, were sent to Kingston Post Shop, where
Abrar Shabren received instructions about his duties as
Postmaster at Casey Station, from the then Postmaster,
Rosanne Warren. Abrar took the covers on board the Aurora
Australis (Voyage V2, Casey resupply), which arrived at
Casey on 29 December 2012. They were cancelled at the
Post Office at Casey Station on 23 February 2013 by Abrar,
who also applied some of the cachets to the backs of the
covers. The covers were returned to Kingston Post Shop by
air via Wilkins Aerodrome, from where they were sent by mail
to Melbourne.
Cover No.4
Cachets on reverse of covers
Cover No.5
Cover Nos 4 & 5
23 February 2013: Commemorating the Centenary of the retrieval of the Western Base Party from the Shackleton
Ice Shelf on 23 February 1913
The voyage of the SY Aurora from Commonwealth Bay to the Shackleton Iceshelf is described by Captain John King
Davis in Chapter 18, pages 43-48, of Mawson (1915b). On page 48 he continues “February 23. (1913): At 4 A.M. the loom
of an ice-tongue was sighted and we were soon standing in to follow this feature until we reached the Shackleton Shelf.
At 8 A.M. we found that we were some miles south of our reckoning.
At 11 A.M. we sighted a depot-flag on the slope. Soon after the ship was up to the fast floe at the head of the bay, the ice
being nearly a mile farther north than on the previous year. In fact, the ice-conditions as a whole had changed
considerably.
At noon we reached the Base and found the party all well.
Wild and his comrades were as glad to see the Aurora as we were to see them. They had commenced to lay in a stock of
seal-meat fearing that they might have to pass another winter on the glacier.
All the afternoon every one was busy getting baggage on board and watering ship. The weather was good and I had
intended to sail on the same evening by moonlight, following the glacier tongue northward in clear water for sixty miles.
As we turned northward, ‘all well’ on board, I felt truly thankful that Wild’s party had been relieved and anxiety on their
account was now at an end.”
Emperor Penguins: In the report of Aurora’s second Antarctic voyage by Eitel (1913), who was Secretary of the
Expedition, he relates two amusing incidents concerning Emperor penguins that occurred on their approach to the
Shackleton Ice Shelf.
“One floe was occupied by five Emperor penguins, standing 4ft. high, who regarded the oncoming prow of the Aurora with mute surprise.
We struck the floe, and over went the stoical penguins flat on their backs. Erect once more, they were no longer silent. Putting their heads
on their breasts they vigorously cawed forth a protest as vehemently eloquent as the comments of a Thames bargee upon the captain of a
mail steamer disputing his way. I glanced at my companion, and we both felt guilty. Fancy penguins causing us to blush at our bad
steering.”
“On Sunday, February 23, we sighted the barrier at a point 30 miles from Wild's base. How delighted we were to observe the barrier had
not carried away from the land, and carried Wild's party to destruction. We steamed under the lee of the barrier, from which last season's
sea-ice extended for some miles as a flat floe edge. On this floe we described a number of dark objects. Telescopists declared they could
recognise Wild and Kennedy distinctly. We were, therefore dismayed when they were observed suddenly' to plunge into the icy cold water.
They were Emperor penguins! So difficult is it to arrive at a sense of proportion in this land of monotonous white. Subsequently we were
often similarly deceived.”
Cover No. 6
14 March 1913 Commemorating the Centenary of the arrival in Port Esperance, Tasmania of the SY Aurora with
the Expeditioners from Cape Denison and the Western Base on the 14 March 1913.
Cover No. 6 was affixed with the 2013 AAT Mountains
se-tenant block of four stamps, which were taken from the
minisheet. The stamps in this issue were of three
different denominations, i.e., 2 x 60¢, 1 x $1.20 and 1 x
$1.80, so they only occurred as a se-tenant block in the
minisheet. They were hand cancelled at the Kingston
Post Shop on 12 March 2013 with the National Pictorial
First Day of Issue postmark, Kingston 7050, by the
postmaster, Jason Jones.
Cachet on reverse of covers
Cover No.6
On 15 March 1913 an article with the following headline: THE MAWSON EXPEDITION - THE AURORA AT PORT ESPERANCE was published
on page 5 of The Mercury (Hobart), see (Anon. 1913b); and http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/10277975. An excerpt follows: ‘A good deal
of speculation and some little excitement was caused at Port Esperance yesterday by the unexpected arrival of a yellow-funneled blackhulled steam yacht of very stout build and somewhat battered appearance, carrying a whalers crow's nest look-out. This craft was the
Australasian Antarctic Expedition's vessel Aurora….. From the Aurora an unshaven and unshorn individual, whom his best friends would
have had very considerable difficulty in recognising as Mr Conrad Eitel, the secretary of the expedition, to such an extent was his erstwhile
clean-shaven face covered by nearly three months' growth of beard, landed, and took passage by the S.S. Dover for Hobart.’ Conrad Eitel
was the only person allowed ashore and his mission was to transmit the story of the expedition to the cable association before Aurora
arrived in Hobart the next day and the local newspapers scooped their competitors.
Apart from Conrad Eitel’s comprehensive account (Eitel 1913), articles by Captain Davis (Davis 1913), C.T. Harrison (Harrison 1913) and
others (Anon. 1913a,b,c) about the expedition were also published in The Mercury on 15 & 17 March 1913 (See References).
Cover No. 7
15 March 1913 Commemorating the Centenary of the arrival in Hobart, Tasmania of the SY Aurora with the
Expeditioners from Cape Denison and the Western Base on the 15 March 1913.
Cover No. 7 was affixed with the 2013 AAT Mountains setenant block of four stamps, which were taken from the
minisheet. The stamps in this issue were of three different
denominations, i.e., 2 x 60¢, 1 x $1.20 and 1 x $1.80, so
they only occurred as a se-tenant block in the minisheet.
They were hand cancelled at the Kingston Post Shop on
15 March 2013 with the Kingston Pictorial Everyday
postmark, Kingston 7050, by the postmaster, Jason
Jones.
Cachet on reverse of covers
Cover No.7
From Chapter 23 in Riffenburgh (2011) and from Rossiter (2011): Early on the morning of 15 March 1913 two special canine members of the
Western Base, who had survived – Zip & Amundsen – were unloaded from the Aurora at Nubeena Quarantine Station. The Aurora then
proceeded upriver to Hobart and berthed alongside Princes Wharf. Harrison, who had seen his cottage through Wild’s binoculars,
disembarked at 7.00 am before she was even tied up. Only a handful of people had turned out to greet the explorers, and without any
interference, Harrison caught the tram home, reunited at last with his wife and children.
On 17 March, members of the shore parties assembled at Harrison’s cottage for dinner. Then the men of the Western Base retired to the back
room for a last drink. ‘At the request of the fellows I presented Mr Wild with a dressing case that we had subscribed to purchase’ wrote
Harrison in his diary. ‘And in doing so, took the occasion to emphasise kindness and consideration we had always received from our
leader…then for the last time Wild sang ”Sweethearts and Wives,” we all joining the chorus, and toasted “the Girls, God bless them,” Carrie
being specially included… we joined hands all around and sang “Auld Lang Syne” – and then the Second Party was no more. It was the worst
part of the Expedition.’ The next day, the men going to Adelaide and Melbourne departed and on 20 March, ‘Wild, and all the others…off per
“Palooma” for Sydney. Never all to meet again I suppose. It was a melancholy moment, but three weeks later Harrison received a last visit
from one of his dearest colleagues. ‘Received permission to land Zip, so took him home,’ he wrote. ‘The kiddies played with him, and he fairly
beamed with good humour. Carrie and children had a ride in the sledge behind him.’ Eventually Zip would be sent to Mount Koscuisko, where
he thrilled visitors by hauling them on a sledge, reliving, in his own way, those hard, but glorious, days in the ice and snow.
References:
ABC (2012) Mawson Science and Survival, DVD produced by Hark Attack and narrated by Jack Thompson. ABC Commercial: Sydney.
*Anon. (1913a) Back from the Antarctic. Article in The Mercury (Hobart) 15 March 1913, page 4. (Available as pdf No. 1 from Pete Cranwell).
*Anon. (1913b) The Aurora at Port Esperance. Article in The Mercury (Hobart) 15 March 1913, page 5. (Available as pdf No. 6 from Pete
Cranwell).
*Anon. (1913c) Mawson Expedition - The Aurora in Hobart – Arrangements for the Future. Article in The Mercury (Hobart) 17 March 1913,
page 5. (Available as pdf No. 5 from Pete Cranwell).
*Davis, John King (1913) Captain Davis’s interesting Report – Aurora’s Voyage - Thrilling Experiences with Blizzards and Bergs. The Mercury
(Hobart) 15 March 1913, page 5. (Available as pdf No. 3 from Pete Cranwell).
Davis, John King (2007) With the ‘Aurora’ in the Antarctic 1911-1914. Originally published by Andrew Melrose Ltd in 1919; re-published by
The Erskine Press: UK.
*Eittel, Conrad C. (1913) The Report of Mr Eitel – A Story of Storm and Stress – Life in the Antarctic. The Mercury (Hobart) 15 March 1913,
pages 5-6. (Available as pdf No. 2 from Pete Cranwell).
Fitzsimmons, Peter (2011) Mawson – and the Ice Men of the Heroic Age: Scott Shackleton and Amundsen. Published by William Heinemann:
Australia.
Gillies, John (2008) The Search for Mawson’s Wireless Sets. Aurora (Journal of the ANARE Club) Volume 28, No. 2, pages 22-24.
Gillies, John (2012) Building a Replica of the Wireless Set used by Douglas Mawson’s 1911 Australasian Antarctic Expedition. Aurora
(Journal of the ANARE Club) Volume 31, No. 4, pages 14-17.
*Harrison, Charles T. (1913) Life at the Second Base - Impressions of a Tasmanian - At Home in Antarctica. The Mercury (Hobart) 15 March
1913, page 6. (Available as pdf No. 4 from Pete Cranwell).
Mawson, Douglas (1915a) The Home of the Blizzard – being the Story of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition 1911-1914, Volume I,
Chapters I-XVI. Published by William Heinemann: London.
Mawson, Douglas (1915b) The Home of the Blizzard – being the Story of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition 1911-1914, Volume II,
Chapters XVII-XXVIII. Published by William Heinemann: London.
Riffenburgh, Beau (2011) AURORA - Douglas Mawson and The Australasian Antarctic Expedition 1911-14. Published by The Erskine Press:
UK.
Rossiter, Heather (editor) (2011) Mawson’s Forgotten Men – The 1911-1913 Antarctic Diary of Charles Turnbull Harrisson. Published by Pier
9: Sydney.
The Blizzard (2013) The Official Newsletter of the Mawson’s Huts Foundation, Issue No. 3.
*All the articles published in The Mercury can be accessed and downloaded from http://trove.nla.gov.au/ where many digitised Australian
newspapers dating from 1803 to 1954 are available. The digitisation system used is an Optical Character Recognition programme and
the quality of the resulting document depends on the quality of the newsprint. The Trove Digitised Newspaper system provides the facility
to correct and download the Electronically Translated Text. The six articles referred to here have all been corrected and are available on
request in pdf format (contact me at [email protected]). For those of you without facilities to download pdfs I am happy to
provide you with hard copy versions at the cost of printing, paper and postage. Contact details are on the order form.
Set of Postcards (10 per set) illustrating scenes from the establishment of the AAE Wireless
Relay Station in 1911-12 and what remained in 2011.
Cover 1 + set of B&W postcards $22.00 per pair
Cover 2 + set of B&W postcards $35.00 per pair
Cover 3 + set of B&W postcards $35.00 per pair
1. The AAE’s five man Macquarie Island team: From the
left are Charles Sandell (wireless operator, mechanic),
George Ainsworth (leader and meteorologist), Arthur Sawyer
(wireless operator), Harold Hamilton (biologist) and Leslie
Blake (cartographer, geologist).
(Photo courtesy of the National Library of Australia)
3. The engine house on Wireless Hill, Macquarie Island,
which housed the generator driving the wireless system. It
was also called De Dion Hut after the name of the generator,
and was situated some distance from the wireless operating
hut so the sound of the engine did not interfere with
monitoring the radio.
(AAE collection at the Mitchell Library NSW State Library)
2. All that remains of the two 30 metre Oregon pine
(Douglas fir) masts erected in 1911-12. The three pieces were
recovered in April 2011 for conservation by the Mawson’s
Huts Foundation in partnership with the Tasmanian Parks
and Wildlife Service and are now with the Tasmanian
Museum and Art Gallery.
(Photo Martin Passingham/Mawson’s Huts Foundation)
4. The Wireless Hut which operated the relay system. Two
members of the AAE slept and monitored signals for 24
hours each day. Only a few boards remain, buried under
thick Macquarie island tussock.
(AAE collection at Mitchell Library, NSW State Library)
5. A winter view of the wireless relay station on the summit
of Wireless Hill, Macquarie island, showing the masts and
aerial.
(AAE collection at the Mitchell Library, NSW State Library)
8. A copy of the original plan for the wireless relay system
installed on the summit of Wireless Hill. It began operating
in January 1912 just a month after landing and picked up
the first signals from a ship near Suva, Fiji, 4000 kms away.
However, it was not until September 25 1912 that the first
signals were received from Cape Denison.
(AAE Collection at the Mitchell Library, NSW State Library)
6. The Telefunken wireless system supplied by
Amalgamated Wireless Australasia (AWA) in Wireless Hut
on Macquarie Island. The same system was installed by the
AAE’s main base at Cape Denison.
(AAE collection at the Mitchell Library, NSW State Library)
9. Engine House and Wireless Hut on Macquarie Island’s
Wireless Hill. The two huts were some distance apart so the
radio signals being monitored by the two men were not
drowned out by the noise of the generator.
(AAE collection, Mitchell Library, NSW State Library)
7. A flying fox erected by sealers was used to transport
supplies to the summit of Wireless Hill including fuel for
the generator, provided by Shell, to power the wireless
system. It was also used to transport the masts up the steep
incline.
(AAE collection at the Mitchell Library, NSW State Library)
10. The AAE’s main accommodation and working hut on
the isthmus, on Macquarie Island was known as “The
Shack”. Sadly it was bull dozed in 1948 to make way for a
scientific station operated by the Australian Antarctic
Division.
(AAE collection at the Mitchell Library, NSW State Library)