ABSTRACT
Jack London continues the story in The Cruise of the Snark as he and Roscoe discuss their daring plan. London recalls: “We asserted that we were not afraid to go around the world in a small boat, say forty feet long. We asserted furthermore that we would like to do it. We asserted finally that there was nothing in this world we’d like better than a chance to do it.”2 As the three adventurers then consider the possibility of this voyage and contemplate the best time to embark, London writes: “We thought we would start in four or five years. Then the lure of the adventure began to grip us. Why not start at once? We’d never be younger, any of us…. So the trip was decided upon, and the building of the Snark began.”2 The trio planned to depart for Honolulu on October 1, 1906, but because of numerous delays, including the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake, cost overruns, and building problems, the Snark did not sail until April 23, 1907. Moreover, misguided planning, faulty construction, and poor equipment spiked the boat’s final cost to an exorbitant 30,000 dollars. Even to London, who told Roscoe and the shipbuilders: “‘Spare no money… Let everything on the Snark be of the best’”;4 this sum was a shock, since the original estimate for the Snark was approximately seven thousand dollars. Nevertheless, having endured these delays, and with the ship’s main engine still inoperable, the Snark sailed for Honolulu with the hope of making repairs there.5
