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Dinesh

Dinesh club

Posted: 02 Jun 2022

Taken: 02 Jun 2022

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 Dinesh
Dinesh club
A blizzard was blowing when they made camp on March 16, 1912, and settled down to sleep. The following morning, the blizzard was still raging. Oates crawled out of his sleeping bag and made for the tent opening, allegedly saying, “I am just going outside. I may be some time.” Whether Oates en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Oates really did say those words is highly suspect. Scott was the only one still keeping the diary and was carefully putting his own spin on events. Prior to the Southern Journey, Oates had nothing but contempt for Scott and considered him grossly incompetent. In light of what had happened in the past few weeks. It would seem likely that Oates’s last words would be little more forceful. Did Scott make up Oates last words? Did Oates actually say: “Sod you lot, I’d rather die outside in a snowdrift than in this tent with you.” Regardless, no one tried to stop him, even though they knew he wasn’t just going out to relieve himself. He limped outside and disappeared into the blizzard. It was Oates’ birthday -- he was 33 years old. And he left behind was his sleeping bag and his diary, with instructions that in the event his diary was found, it be sent to his mother. (Whether Scott thumbed through it is unknown.) ~ Page 230

Rescue Party

The next day they carried on south, in an effort to find Oates. On November 14, at 80 degrees south, they reached Scott’s second-to-last camp, where they found Oate’s sleeping bag, the theodolite and camera. But no Oates -- a winter storms had buried his body. They probably walked right over him and didn’t even know it.

In the early morning of the 15th we built a cairn with a cross on the near place where Oates walked out to his death in a blizzard, with a note lashed to the cross which read “Hereabouts died a very gallant gentleman . . . he walked willingly to his death in a blizzard to try to save his comrades beset by hardships ~ Wright memoirs - page 267
2 years ago. Edited 2 years ago.
 Dinesh
Dinesh club
Return to Antarctica
20 months ago.

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