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Preface.
As President of the Oxford Exploration Club from its start

I am glad to have the privilege of writing a few words of preface to
my friend Mr. Edward Shackleton's story of its latest, and, in many ways, most
remarkable expedition. It was a bold enterprise for young men, for,
apart from Dr Noel Humphrey, the leader, and Sergeant Stallworthy of
the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the average age of the party was
twenty-three. Sailing from London on 17th July 1934 the expedition
found it impossible, owing to the jam of floe ice in Smith's Sound, to
reach the base in Ellesmere Land, on which they had decided, and were
compelled to spend the winter at Etah, in Northern Greenland. In the
spring of 1935 they grouped themselves into three parties, one of which
penetrated into Grant Land crossed the United States Range, and came
within sight of the Polar Sea. It discovered a new range of mountains
10,000 feet high.

The whole expedition returned to England in October 1935
without a single casualty, and with much of valuable scientific data.
Apart from their initial bad luck in not wintering in Ellesmere Land,
they were kindly treated by fortune.

Mr. Shackleton has given a vivid description of a winter
spent far inside the Arctic Circle. Had the ghosts of the old explorers
in that region visited the camp they would have been amazed by some
of the incidents of its life. Daily it was in touch with the outer
world through the radio, and could listen every evening to English and
American programmes. On Christmas Day a special broadcast was made
for its occupants from London, containing messages from home and their favourite