New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1852-01-13
att " CIR ESCENT
Or. Kane's Lectures.


sz Or. Kane's Lectures.
n The annual course Of lectures at the Smith
scnian Institute, Washington, was commenced
BY nr Kane, " S. Navy, on the 10Th ult., and
Or. K. has given three lectures. His subject
was the Grinnell expedition to the Arctic seas.
to which lie was attached, and embraced de-
.scriptions Of the scenery, and explanations Of
the natural phenomena of that region. 8l+
The second lecture was exceedingly interest
ing, aud we give the following synopsis Of it,
which We end in the National lntelligencer
The lecture opened with an explanatory re-
saAle of the geography of the Arctic regions,
illustrated with well prepared diagrams. One Of
these was SO arranged as to exhibit the seat Of
search after Sir John Franklin. and upon it
were drawn the lines of ice-drift of the Amer
lean Expedition.
The experience of Parry and his followers
faayeahat this region is q vast archipelago,
whose main approach by large Sound, called
Lancaster, and whose most prominent passage
10 the North is by a large estuary or inlet,
mined after the Duke of Wellington. Inns Inlet
has been frequently observed free from ice.
+. Franklin was ordered by the British Admi-
,.alty 10 proceed through Lancaster Sound for
some three hundred and fifty miles, to Cape
called Walker; thence he was to steer TO the
.santhWard and westward, towards Behring's
Straits. Failing to accomplish this, he was or
dered to attempt passage to the north by We'll
1ington channel Dr. Kane, by series ofprac
sical arguments, which seem to us almost con-
elusive, shows that this wss the passage which
1bo adopted, and we see, although few of the
English officers differ with him in opinion, that
the recent publications Of the British press fully
sustain this view. The position of Sir John
Franklins first winter quarters, at the very
mouth Of, this channel, is conclusive as to the
faotot that juaicious commander having con
telnpi8tetl It's future navigation. | was the al
iernatlye enioined by his ORDERS and the lee
f.re detailed many facts to show that il was Il
dfaserite alternative. Dr.. Kane, in inyestigat-
1ngsthe natural laws which regulate the ice
rrItt, showed that the eastern sides Of this chan
,e NE earlier End pore g.,
John Franklin bled him to see and take adj
vantage of The very first of these early openings
Add TO this the singular and perplexing fact
that Franklin left no written record of his IN
-tenfions, andi really seems as if the ice had
suddenly opened TO the north and that Sir John,
with his daring and energetic promptitude, had
pushed INTO this new water. without delaying to
giveto the world behind him a notice of his
course: Certain it is that the deserted enGamp-
allent bears marks of hasty departure, forcing
stosthe conclusion that Sir John franklin has
s7fS years ago reached the region north of this
aee-bound inlet, and has since been unable to
return -
dan he have survived; This question was
tken taken mp by Dir. Kane in a manner that
surprised us We were u,prepared for the re-
sources which that region evidently possesses
for the support Of human life. Narwhal, white
whales, and seal--the latter in extreme alum
-Ghilee--creEd the waters of Wellington chan
mel Indeed, il wasdcsc,ibed as a region tenn
,lssssF arit4 animal life" The migrations of the
seliselstlstcs, the brent goose, and the allk-a
ll3tfd bout the size Of our teal-were absolutely
wonderful The fatty envelope of these marine
animals, known as Hts5ber, supplies light and
iIeats their Jar$ warm and well adapted cloth
ing. their fresh wholesome and anti-Seorbuffc
5ead isMtllie the saow-hut OF lgoe of the Esaui-
naaal43 furnishes a dry and comfortable housing
Ina word. Dr. Kane announced that, LATTER a
careful comparison Of all the natural resources
Of this REGION he was convinced that food fuel
and clotling--the three great contributors to
& human e4i stefce--wore here in superintendent
plenty. sa..a 4
In answer TO the superstition of the entire de- |
Striiction of the vessels and crews of Sir John
Franklin by shipwreck, or the attacks the ice
Dr. Kane said that wind storms were rare, |
and that the simultaneous destruction of 10Th |
vessels was hard to realize but even SURPRISING
that winds should have foundered the ships, Oh,
that the ice should have crushed them that same
1eewould serve in either case, as a means Of es |
'sGSsst lnas52 more than one thousand whalers |
were cast out. shelterless, upon the ice in Baf |
Inns Bay. Yet only seven persisted
The interesting question of an open sea around
4he Lols Was then taken UNI After CITING the
theoretical arguments i'll favor Of such body of
water which we cannot here renew. Dr. Kane
mentioned that the American Expedition under
Lieut.. De Haven had actually seen from their
3aest northern point that unlnistakeable sign,
The dark cloud known as the g ardter shy y and
Capt Penny. an energetic whaler, for whose
VIEWS Dir, Kane seemed to have great respect, |
confirmed this g sky bysghting the water itself
Such an open sea has been vaguely called a |
Polyna, or Ppliniya-a term from the Russian,
WHICH implies an open space. DIR. Kane cannot
think that, in literal sense, such u sea exists
in regions where the mean temperature is so far
below the point Of congelation. He fully adyo-
Gates. however, the existence Of comparatively
7ceiess sea in which the drift never aggutinates
II is in this region, not far to the north and
west of the point which the American Expedi-
tion reached, that he supposes Sir John Frank
lin and his companions to be ilnnured sur I
rounded by seal and the resources before de-
scrihed, butunable TO leave their hunting ground |
and cross the frigid Sahara which ntervenes
Between them and the world from which they |
are shut out
An old woman was praising, in rather enthu- !
siastic Terms, the sermons Of Scotch minister WHO had
acquired great reputation for depth and submity Tho
suspicious Of her auditor little reused and she I
Fentured To propose question to her: Well Jenny |
dc ye understand him ~ understand hin, eacul;-
ted Jenny holding up her hands in stonishmen at the
Haestioni Ne understand him Wa,l hae the pre-
snniptonti'