The Tiffin tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1868-1887, 1873-07-03
The Information Brought by the PO-
larls Ice-Party.

The statements of the Polaris ice
party have now been before the pub
lie for several days, and they not only
show the important results secured by
the expedition, but also the prompt
ness, dedision and generally capacity
for affairs of the presiding head of the
Navy Department, who personally
managed the examination, prepared
the statement and ordered the search
for the missing vessel and its animate
and inanimate treasures. 1t will, /
think, generally be conceded by
thoughtful neen, that the action in re-
lation to this whole matter, evinees
rare judgment and ability, AID will
gave the public better idea of Secre-
tary Robenson than any thing in the
routine duties Of his important Office
could have done Ia many years.
1t will be noticed that the facts in
relation to the new explorations are
much more definite and accurate than
was at first believed The bays, chan
nels, head lands ahd eapes which
were discovered, were surveyed with
care, and their positions ascertained
and recorded, and the animal and
vegetable specimens gathered in the
Polaris, II they ever come to light, will
add largely to ourstock of knowledge.
1t Is shown too that those high latf-
tudes are by no means as destitute Of
animal life as has been supposed.
Captain Hall, in his last dispatch, so
singularly preserved, which was dat
ed st Cape Bieevoort, above latitude
81, says: ave find this much warm
er country than we expected. From
Cape Alexander the mountains on
either side of Kennedy Channel and
Robson Strait, we found entirely
bare OF snow and ice, with the excep-
ton Of o glacier extending east-north-
east IS far as can be seen from the
mountains Of Polaris Bay. The
country abounds with life; and there
are seals, geese, ducks, musk cattle,
rabbits, wolves, foxes, bears, part
ridges, lemming, etc. ~ -r 81
1t Is mentioned, too, in the testimO-
ny of Capt. Tyson, that drift-wood
was found in the winter quarters at
Polaris Bay, and that among the speci-
mems gathered for preservation were
black walnut, ash and pine. The
signidcapce OF this little fact will not
escape The attention of tho intoIli-
gent q observer. No wood is
grown in these high latitudes. The
ground produces no shrubs except
some feeble specimens of willow,
which send few creeping twigs along
the ground to the extent of five or six
inches. This drift-wood is not, there
fore, produced here, and as it did not
float upwards through Baffin's Bay
and Smiths Sound against the cur
rent which always pushes steadily
southwark with its burden of ice, it
must have come up from the south on
the opposite side of the globe, and
found its way through the unknown
ws rdaronad the Pole, and so down.
water to this point 1t is thus another
link in the chain of evidence which
goes to establish the existence OF open
waters beyond the limits Of human
knowledge. l gia Ii iiauil
Another interesting factswhieh the
evidences bring out Is the remains Of
Esquimsux encampments on the
shores of Polaris Bay, showing that
these regions have been explored by
the native tribes who have their habi-
tations farther south. Capt. Tyson
SAYS We lOu4u lh6S VI I6bOnCc
laid around, and, in digging about
these stones, we found spear-heads,
pieces of bone and implements
These huts were possibly 80 or 40 years
old. The spesr-heads were made Of
WaIrus teeth.u Capt. Tyson also con-
firms the statement of Capt. Hail in
relation to the climate during the Arc
tic summer. He says: "When we
went in there In the latter part of
August, all the land was bare OF snow.
There were hills on the coast 500 or
1900 feet high, entirely clear Of snow,
and az far as we could see the noun
tain ranges in the interior they were
all clear of snow. The temperature
In summer is very hot on the land
On the top of the elevation it was
warm. The ground produces little
punches of flowers and Willows
There is but very little grass, but there
are these little flowers, and willows,
and moses. The willows run along
the ground like vine.
The polar sea of DR.. Kane is ex-
ploded by the Polaris discoveries
The Polaris sailed through the waters
which he discovered and supposed to
be sea, and found that, instead of
expanding into q sea, they narrowed
into strait, not more than q dozen
miles In width, which was named
Robeson Strait in honor Of the Sec
retary of the Navy. But it does not
follow that because DR.. Kane's sea has
turned out to be 9 sound, his theory of
open water about the pole is an error.
On the other hand, evidence accumu-
lates at every step to make more prob
able the existence Of such a body Of
wstor. The long series of sounds and
straits and channels which open up
TO the voyager as he goes North from
Baffin's Bay must at last communi-
este with some open water through
which the drift-wood, found at Polaris
Bay, must have come, as also the
large packs Of floating ice which so
beset and endanger navigation. But,
as yet, no such sea has been reached.
The abundance Of animals in these
high lstitudes is . strong indication
that the seventies of the Labrador
are mitigated rather than In
tensified after the passage of Smiths
sound.
Musk cattle, which weigh from
five TO six hundred pounds, abound
here, and Captain Tyson killed no
less than twelve In one hunting ex-
cufsi0n of two days. This was on the
north side Of Newman Bay, in lati-l
tude 50. He says they are as good for
food as beef, and do not taste of
musk, as in lower lstitudes. He saw
no wolves, and only few white fox
es; no reindeer, or frogs, or musqui-
tos, or snakes; no whales, nor signs
OF any; but there were flies, bumble-I
bees, butterflies, brown geese, gTiiis,
ivory gulls, foxes and bears.
Contrary to ell the notions hitherto
prevailing, the Polaris party did not
ind the Aurora Borealis to grow more
brilliant as they got nearer 70 the pole.
On the other hand, itwas less an OBJ
jeet OF observation and interest.
Capt Tyson says ''Of the Northern
lights / saw, in the highest Iatitudess
nothing but faint streaks, and those
only occasionalfy-not 50 distinct as /
have seen them in New York The
lights were northeast Of rs. We saw
them oftener and more brilliant when
further down-in shout latitude 20.
When We got to the latitude we win
tered in, they were indistinet and
seemed to be northeast efus." a5l !
No fish were found n the high lati-
tudes, but seals were numerous, and
great multitudes were killed. These
and an opportune bear saved the lives
OF the ice party and furnished them
food In their long journey. IL is a lit
tie curious that their great ice RATS
should have outsailed the Polafis and
brought them safely into port while
the strong steamer with its ponderous
STAYS behind for help.