The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1874-10-29
lHE ARTlC UNKNOWN.
ae Discovery of Erancis JosePh
sand Polar Explorations DeCtars
Sd SseIcSs.
Correspondence OF shs nj. World

forre1rcnseuce O. the " I. World.
fusIsTrss, Norway, Aug so.--Another
Ink hns besn formed in the chain Of discoY-
cyvi.:h is eventually to unite the now IN
oyR regions of the Attic Ocean to the
taiiias world, and this time the finders are
II the Austrian nation The discovery
slich they made Will render their names
f-mous in the now but partially unrolled
record Ct Arctic Discovery. | have just had
le1g end interesting conversation With
osF'ain Payer, tie leader Of the expedition
Yea have already heard Of the expedition as
given by the men themselves Il il a won
1effui story. Circumstances which they
could not control guided these men to the
discovery of.what may prove to be a long
Fought IAriic continent. 1t ia certain
that they hav. covered new land AMI
ons q great erte,t-s After Count Wilczes,s
departure the steaise- was headed north.
eat, according to the original plan OF the
n7sdltion. But the ice was forming fast
ard they soon found them selves completely
clded in the drifts. To pavigate was an
imrossib;iity. Fourteen long month. this
tteanr and these men were imprisoned ir
the mighty foes ana carried with them in
their never-ceasilg motion. Then in De-
cember, 1873. land hove in sight The ice
With which they were floating was brought
80 stsad-still by the land. The party
dlsembaIked, and with dogs and sledges
lourneyed INLAND. Ths land was composed
of mounteins Of dolomHe formation, sspara-
led by huge glaciers. The dolouits np-
peared IN some places as compact lime
stone, and in Others in huge crystalline
graduated rocks OF cloudy color. But
little vegetation Of any kind was noticed,
snd with the exception Of few Artic birds,
no animal life Was observed The party
'ray.led northwari to latitued 81 deg, and
then returned to their ship. r rom the point
+lined, the land extended to the north and
vest as far Is the eye could reach The
discoTerers named the land "frluois Joseph
Land"
The great question now to be settled il,
What is this Francis Joseph Land which
Captain Payer has dIsccveredln Our geo
grarhers here are undecided, som. boiling
that i Is a part Of Eastern Greenland.
his latter theory is stoutly maintained by
the followers Of Petermann who have always
maintained that the abrup. and mou infamous
enas. Of East Greenland tends away TO the
northeast slightly beyond Sooresby's furth-
crest point north Of SpiizbergcD The alb
sence Of animal life is Important in settling
this question, for HAYES tells Us that the
Whole region around the shores of Smiths
Sound teens with animal life, and one
E9cd hunter could easily feed twenty
mouths lie sea abounds in walrus, seal
narTha, and white whale, the land in rain
dser foTes, eid-r-duok, wild geese, enipe and
guile Of various dascript ION, and the ice is
the roaming ground Of bears Francis Jo-
serh Land seems to have none Of these; but
TINS fact may be explained by the presence
Of colder currents than in Smiths Sound,
>nd The future Of the explorers to find ami
nal life in their brief journey is not conclu.
sive evidence Of its non.existence No limit
has yet been discovered to the existence of
s6liufd tgsBjtlia the Arctic Cjrcls ,.ayd,a
sesson shosld not be regarded as absolute
Ir oUf or II. absence