A rather heavily edited version of Bernacchi’s diaries together with passages from To the South Polar Regions, with connecting commentary of tedious nature, until the end. Most interesting are the feuds between Borchgrevink and Bernacchi, which are well-captured in the text. Not much reference to reading, books, etc., nor the supposedly decent library aboard ship. Here are a few references:
That First Antarctic Winter: The Story of the Southern Cross Expedition of 1898-1900, as Told in the Diaries of Louis Charles Bernacchi
- 1898–1900 British Antarctic Expedition (Carsten Borchgrevink on Southern Cross).
- Antarctic Reading: Expeditions
To the South Polar Regions: Expedition of 1898-1900.
- 1898–1900 British Antarctic Expedition (Carsten Borchgrevink on Southern Cross).
- Antarctic Reading: Expeditions
Hardly the most scintillating of Antarctic narratives, but fascinating for the way in which Bernacchi ignores the presence of Borchgrevink, referring to him only as the commander (almost never by name), never giving him any role in the expedition. See Janet Crawford’s edition above for a more candid account of the expedition. Bernacchi’s emphasis was always on science and much of this account is a description of what he and his colleagues found, indicating other avenues of exploration. There are many literary allusions and quotations, but little indication of what he read aboard ship or while wintering at Cape Adare.
First on the Antarctic Continent, Being an Account of the British Antarctic Expedition 1898-1900
- 1898–1900 British Antarctic Expedition (Carsten Borchgrevink on Southern Cross).
- Antarctic Reading: Expeditions
Borchgrevink comes across as a sanctimonious sycophant, at least at the beginning, full of himself and his role in “the world’s history.” For contrast from an antagonist, see Louis Charles Bernacchi who detested Borchgrevink. Pretty clear that this is one of those self-serving travel accounts which conceals the depths of animosity that developed within his staff.
A Forgotten Explorer: Carsten Egeberg Borchgrevink
- 1898–1900 British Antarctic Expedition (Carsten Borchgrevink on Southern Cross).
- Antarctic Reading: Expeditions
Account of one of the first to set foot on Antarctica (Cape Adare Jan. 1895). Points out a good number of Borchgrevink’s claims for which there is no evidence, allowing the inference that Borchgrevink was a great liar.