Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1873-01-24
South Polar Explorations.
From the Boston Globe.


sionary to Iceland who, on being
demonstrated with for preaching a
future place Of torment infinitely
lower in temperature than even the
1celandic atmosphere, replied that
if he should preach one of even
average warmth, his congregation
would all be anxious to go there.
There was unquestionably sound
sense in the argument. Not only
the unconverted, but the converted,
dislike to dwell upon subjects which
are personally uncomfortable at the
time being. The most rapid de-
yourer of books does not care to
read frozen literature under the
biting influences of such weather
as we are now experiencing, and
few of the multitude who daily
stamp their heels upon the slippery
platforms of our city srailroad sta
tions think of the taste of ice cream
without shuddcr. During such
days as the three we have just lived
through, it is pleasant to sit before
the cheerful blaze of ones library
fire, snugly ensconced in an easy
chair, with slippered feet resting on
the fender, with nothing to molest
or make afraid, to dream dreams of
summers past, or summers to come,
or to lazily linger over volume of
tropical travels or tropical adven-
turc. Few, happily or unhappily,
can afford to shirk the more active
duties Of life for such enjoyment.
The larger part of us who cumber
this planet are obliged to face the
winters cold and summers heat
with all the attendant contingencies
of burning and freezing.
At the risk Of producing an ad-
ditional chatter among the more
sensitive of our readers, we venture
to touch upon subject which just
now possesses more than ordinary
interest. We refer to the South
Polar expedition, which is now in
course Of preparation in Europe
under the direction and personal
supervision of the distinguished
German geographer, DR.. Neumayer,
who proposes to accompany it In
a work just published by DR.. Neu-
mayer, all the explorations of the
South Polar regions are sammari-
zed, and the advantages of further
research pointed out. Until the
year 1916 the tarthest point south
reached was Cape Horn. At that
time, and until the voyage by Abel
Tasman in 1912, it was the general
belief of geographers that the An
tarctic regions were occupied by a
vast icc-bound continent, which
found place on the maps of the
day as the Great South Continent.
Tasman sailed round the southern
coast of New Holland and discover
ed Van Dieman's Land, and in 1870
and l774 Captain Cook, in his two
celebrated voyages, furnished ad
ditional proof of the incorrectness
of the old theory. This latter navi-
gator came to the conclusion that
no stretch of land of any extent
existed outside of-the South Polar
circle, and that, if any such existed
inside the Antarcti> zone, it must
be useless for all productive pur-
poses and barren of life. This
theory has since been amply con.
tirmed. Since the commencement
ofthe present century, several voy-
ages have been conducted inside
the South Polar circle, all Of them
contributing in a greater or less
measure to our knowledge of the
Antarctic regions.
In 1919 the islands known as Pal.
mer's Land and the South Orkneys
were discovered by the British brig
Williams, and after that date were
frequently visited by whalers. Ross
expedition in 1912, touched at the
latter, and rechristened them the
South Shct!ands. These lands are
described as sterile and ice-bound,
almost always enveloped in dense
fogs, and showing scarcely \ trace
OF vegetation. Here and there, from
out Of the mass of ice, rises black
volcanic peak. Numbcrless birds
nestle on these islands, on which
no quadrupeds have been as yet
discovered, and on the warm sides
Of the volcanic cones are to be found
multitudes of penguins, which use
them as resting places. In the
surrounding sea is rich vegetable
life, with abundance of seals and
fishes. In 1919, the Russian En-
pire took the lead, and sent out an
important expedition undcr the
command Of Captains Bellinghausen
and Lazaren. These courageous
explorers almost circumnavigated
the pole at an average distance of
thirty degrees, and explored larger
tract inside the polar circle than had
ever been done before. They also
discovered the first continental land
in the South Polar circle, which
they named "Alexander Land"
This appeared to be cape belong
ing to large continent; it was
completely locked in ice, and in the
sea itselfall life appeared to be ex-
tinct. From 1919 up to 1910 num-
erous expeditions, English, French
and American, were fitted out for
the exploration Of the polar regions,
the most fruitful being that under
taken by Balleny in the southern
waters Of New Zealand, and the
better equipped that commanded by
Lieutenant Wilkes, of the United
States navy, which set sail from
Terra del Fuego in February, 1899.
The general result Of these explora-
tions was the establishment Of a
high probability that there existed
within the South Polar circle a vast
continent, the Antarctic Continent
Wilkes in particular travelled over
a stretch OF more than fifteen hun
dred miles along q vast wall of ice,
from one hundred and fifty to two
hundred feet high, beyond which
at many points rose high, noun
famous land.
The voyages OF Ross, above
alluded to, were in the ships Erebus
and Terror, which afterward be-
cama wnrld known from their con-