| Description | Written from 21 Eccleston Square, London, SW
Kempe will remember coming to see Markham on 16 February and going over the memo to be submitted to the RS President and Officials, which Kempe took away with him. Markham has never heard any more about it, but the matter has become very much more urgent. Markham intends to write to Sir William Huggins on the subject, but first he would be glad if Kempe would kindly read the letter so he encloses a copy. If there is any desire for the two Societies to work in concert, Markham cannot see how all concession can be refused.
As to the conference, the main points are;
1. Freedom for the Commander to prosecute exploration during both navigable seasons.
1. Freedom for the commander to winter if he consides it necessary in the interests of the expedition, and can find safe quarters
The order to land a party, at the beginning of the season, and so waste precious time, is due to ignorance of Antarctic navigation on the part of Dr Gregory and his friends. If they had known that he could not be landed early in the season or until the middle or end of February, they would have scarcely wanted to waste the navigable seasons. There ought to be no difficulty in settling this.
The writing is equally unfortunate: for the expedition willl be a failure as regards its most interesting results, if writing is prohibited.
Markham has written a long letter to Sir William Huggins on this subject, a copy of which is sent to Kempe.
The landing party is a serious, and may be a fatal, mistake. Markham will write a separate letter to Sir Willliam Huggins on the risks entailed by a landing party because the matter specally affected those who are asked to sign the Instructions. |