'We shall die like gentlemen'

ON SUNDAY, February 5th, “600 flights were grounded at Heathrow despite just three inches of snowfall, disrupting the plans of as many as 18,000 travellers” according to The Daily Telegraph. The news would surely have been greeted with incredulity by an appalled Captain Scott, the dashing Antarctic explorer who perished 100 years ago in 1912 during his doomed return from the South Pole.

Scott, knowing he was going to die, famously wrote some “farewell letters” home, one of which, found on his frozen body, will be auctioned at Bonhams Polar Sale in London on March 30th. The letter was intended for financier Sir Edgar Speyer, honorary treasurer of the fund-raising committee for the trip.

Sensing that the position was hopeless, Scott wrote, “I fear we must go . . . but we have been to the Pole and we shall die like gentlemen – I regret only for the women we leave behind. We very nearly came through and it’s a pity to have missed it but lately I have felt that we have overshot our mark – no-one is to blame and I hope no attempt will be made to suggest that we lacked support.”

This is one of the 20th century's great letters – evoking a glorious age of exploration and evincing a commendable lack of self-pity. The sentiments expressed are surely priceless, but the estimate is £100,000-£150,000 (€120,000-€181,000). Also in the sale is a photograph of the three men who survived the expedition – Tom Crean from Co Kerry, Teddy Evans and William Lashly (£400-£500). (€480-€600) – MP