The Sun.
London, England, 1852-03-22 00:00:00

MODEL OF THE ARCTIC REGIONS.
On Saturday we had the gratification of minutely
examining the very beautiful model of the Arctic
Regions now on view under the shadow of
Mr. Wyld's Great Globe, in Leicester square.
Any one who has hitherto had but a confused
notion of the relative position of localities, and of
the extent of discoveries in those frozen seas of the
wrtht will find by a scrutiny of this really remarkable
work of art all their ideas upon the subject at
()lee systematizrid. Nothing can be more imme-
diately comprehensible, even to those merely ac-
quainted with the rudiments of northern geogra-
PhY• than the magnificent representation of the
quarter of the globe referred to—the North Pole and the
various countries surrounding it, extending down-
wards so far as to include the whole group of
the British islands. What renders the model
here mentioned the more valuable and instantaneously
appreciable is the fact of its being convex instead of
concave like the gigantic effigy of the earth above it,
an effigy necessarily so rendered in consequence
of its very magnitude. All the elevations are accu-
rately given, and the whole scene is portrayed with
an admirable regard even to the colouring of the grey-
hued land, the sky-blue sea, the virgin snows, and
even the yellowish evidences of the sandy deposits re-
sulting from the ocean wash. All the more interesting
realities are indicated by name, after the manner of an ordi-
nary map, so that the spectator can follow the tracks of the
various navigators without the interrupting assistance of
a book for reference. Of course the central point of
attraction is the spot in which—thanks to the enterprise
of Captain Penny—the last traces of Sir John
Franklin were discovered, extending up through Wel-
lington Channel to the :dam Thule of that northern
inlet called by the name of her Majesty Queen Victoria.
Perhaps the most interesting fact in connexion with the
whole subject is the belief that beyond the vast barriers
of ice there are in the immediate vicinity to what, for
the sake of a name, is called the North Pole, the
advantages of a clear sea, a genial climate, a fruitful
soil, and an abundance of Arctic fish, birds, and animals
—a supposition caused by the otherwise unaccountable
circumstance that the voyagers in those seas have ob-
served again and again that the polar animals
coming from the extreme north are plump and well
in fl-sb, whereas those travelling from the south are in-
variably lean and in a miserable condition. From
having possibly traversed these regions, or
at any rate skirted them, it is still
hoped that . the missing expedition may
yet be discovered, and that we may find yet in
the land of the living Sir John Franklin and bis
adventurous companions. AccordianvgigattoorMs,r.
iWf yeltdijel
theory of the matter, those navigators,
surviving, will be found, if anywhere, endea-
vouring to make their way back from the Arctic
seas, not by returning through Wellington Channel, but
by escaping through &bring's Straits. Whatever may
be the opinions entertained upon this matter, however,
the model, upon the excellences of which we have here
commented, will be found by all intelligent minds to be
fraught with peculiar and enthralling interest.