Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1872-11-04
TidinpS from the Polar Sea.

The tidings from the great open Polar Sea
will be read with deep interest, aS furnishing
new evidence of the existence Of that 'ny~ter
ious phenomenon first made known by the
American explorers under Dr. Kane. This
time the explorer is the bold Norwegian Cap
tain Nils johnson, who, AS late as the latter part Of
last August, rcdscovcrcd and rc.c&plorcl for
the second time the islands lying to the east OF
Spitzbergen, and, moreover discovered from
the mountains of the islands seas free OF cc to
the northeastward and the indications Of power
full oceanic currents serving to keep open the
higher Polar seas.
For two and half centuries rs DIR. Peter
mann, the great German gcographer Through
whom the present intelligence cOmeS), has SAID
these lands have been danced about on the
map by the various photographers OF different
expeditions Last June Captain Altman, OF
Hammerfest, visited them, and now the lnves-
tigation of Captain johnson furnishes accurate
data for their geography. The value Of this
discovery must not be measured by the slgnli-
canoe or magnitude of the land explored, but
is highly important as revealing certain long
desired points of observation and research as 10
the physical geography OF these high ATTITUDES
iu the Atlantic and as to the existence and
cause of the PolyhymDia, seen last year to eX-
tend to the northeastward by the Austrian ex-
plorers, Payer and Weyprccht. Captain > Ohm
sen attained the high latitude of nearly eighty
degrees north, and from the SUBMITS OF the hills
found that the sea to the Dorthcastward. in the
tract of Payers and Weyprecht's expedition OF
last year. was entirely free from ice. This
corroborates the Austrian reports Of the icccss
sea stretching towards the Pole, along the sup
posed pathway of the prolonged equatorial sur
q i 81 N,,1f bnt
Zembla and Spitzbergen. The islands visited
by the Norwegian explorer lie in the very throat
or, at least, on the edge, of the great Polar ice
current which in July, 1927, when only four
hundred and thirty geographical miles from the
Pole, compelled Sir Edward Parry to give W
his advance northward, because In that height
of Arctic Summer all the ice fields were Ia mo-
ton, and swept faster to the south than his
men could drag their boats to the north, lfthe
observations now announced show an lcecss sea
northeast Of the newly discovered islands the
strong inference is that in the deep channel
eastward and nearer to Nova Zembla this years
expeditions will find warmer weather, southerly
winds and the extension of the Gulf Stream.
producing and maintaining an open water gate
way to to the extreme ATTITUDES of our globe
The fact observed by Captain johnson Of enor
nous piles of driftwood strewn longltudlnally
along the coast of the new tound-land, proves
that the currents of the Arctic Ocean are Meth
or idle nor feeble forces, but play stupendous
part in breaking up the ices and mitigating the
Climate of the Pole. Viewing the Norwegian
exploration 10 this light, it will be of great in
tcre.t and Of permanent value in Arctic gcog-
raphy-N. T. Herald
THE PETERSBURG CoNvENTioN.-Thc at
tention Of the farmers throug bout the State is
directed to the following
RICHMOND, Va, November |, 1872.
To the Farmers Of Virginia:
In obedience to resolution passed at meet
ing of farmers, held in the Capitol, in the city
of Richmond, on the Goth of October, 1872.
you are requested to hold public meetings in
your counties on your respective court-days: TOR
such time as may be most siutable), and APP
point delegates to Farmers Convention, to
assemble ia Petersburg on the 9th day of
November next. }. H. LEE, Chairman.
VIM Trumbul, Secretary.