Appeal for help to decipher Discovery explorer puzzle

Society unable to solve riddle of shorthand notes written on Antarctic explorer’s CV

A mystery has been unearthed in the archives of the Perth-based Royal Scottish Geographical Society relating to one of the great Antarctic explorers.

Sir Ernest Shackleton was secretary of the RSGS, which was then headquartered in Edinburgh, from 1904 to 1905, and was seen as an invigorating influence, introducing the latest innovations such as the telephone.

Relics of his time at the RSGS include handwritten council minutes, numerous photographs and an annotated map of the Antarctic. Recently, while looking through some archive boxes, society writer in residence Jo Woolf rediscovered Shackleton’s CV, dated December 1903 and designed specifically to apply for the vacant post of secretary.

In 1903, Shackleton had just returned from his first Antarctic expedition with Captain Robert Falcon Scott on board the Discovery, during which he achieved a new “furthest south”, and was seeking work while planning his next venture.

His CV was beautifully prepared and printed, and contained testimonials from his most influential friends, among them Sir Clements Markham, secretary of the Royal Geographical Society in London, who described him as “able, zealous, conscientious and energetic”.

Captain Robert Falcon Scott is quoted as saying, as his Third Officer, Shackleton was “a marvel of intelligent energy”.

In reality, there was rivalry between them, elegantly skimmed over in the CV.

Scott had sent Shackleton home early from the Antarctic on medical grounds but Shackleton regarded this as a slur on his capabilities.

His CV makes the best of the incident, drawing attention to his diligence, usefulness, and “indomitable pluck”, and noting the “severe work” led to his “breaking a blood vessel”.

The document contains a mystery as there are shorthand notes in pencil which the society have been unable to decipher. Was this a reaction to the application, a comment on his character or a dictated response to his CV?

Anyone who can help can contact enquiries@rsgs.org.

Was this a reaction to the application, a comment on his character or a dictated response to his CV?

RSGS. Picture: Sir Ernest Shackleton, and his CV.