First of very many editions of the famous and tragic official account of the Terra Nova expedition, arranged from Scott's journals which were retrieved when his tent was discovered in 1912.

First of very many editions of the famous and tragic official account of the Terra Nova expedition, arranged from Scott's journals which were retrieved when his tent was discovered in 1912.

Scott's achievement in reaching the South Pole on January 18, 1912, is inextricably linked with the sense of heartbreak at having been beaten to the Pole by Amundsen by just thirty-four days, and the disastrous return journey in which Scott, Evans, Oates, Bowers, and Wilson all perished. It 'is sufficient to state that Scott's eloquent prose propelled him into the realm of greatness despite his flaws. What Scott wrote at the end of his life was an inspiration in meeting death with supreme dignity, and his words entreat reading again and again. One does not have to wonder why Scott's Last Expedition has gone through so many editions and printings: few stories of exploration touch the soul so deeply' (Rosove).

Scott wrote in a letter to his wife, '…but for my own sake I do not regret this journey, which has shown that Englishmen can endure hardships, help one another, and meet death with as great a fortitude as ever in the past. We took risks, we knew we took them; things have come out against us, and therefore we have no cause for complaint, but bow to the will of providence, determined still to do our best to the last… Had we lived, I should have had a tale to tell of the hardihood, endurance, and courage of my companions which would have stirred the heart of every Englishman. These rough notes and our dead bodies must tell the tale…'.

This copy has been signed on the first flyleaf by a number of expedition personnel: Shore Party Officers Edward Evans, (dated 1914), Victor Campbell, and Edward Atkinson; Shore Party scientific staff Frank Debenham, Charles Wright, and Raymond Priestley; and Ship's Party Officers Henry Pennell, Henry Rennick, Wilfred Bruce, Francis Drake and Dennis Lillie. There is also a loosely inserted sheet of notepaper with the printed heading "British Antarctic Expedition -- Terra Nova R.Y.S", signed by Griffith Taylor and Victor Campbell on the recto; on the reverse is the note in pencil "Gone for Meat [undecipherable name]" with a later note "Possibly written by [undecipherable name]" signed with what appear to be the initals D.G.