The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1876-12-06
The British Arctic Expedition.

The British Arctic expedition under
Captain Mares, comprising the steamers
Alert and Discovery, has returned, the
Alert having arrived at Valentia, New
foundland, on October 81. The ships
left England on May 30, 1875, and en-
tered the ice off Cape Sable on July 29.
After severe struggle, the north side
of Lady Franklin bay was reached, and
here the Discovery was left in winter
quarters. The Alert pushed on up to
latitude eighty-two deg. and twenty.
seven min, and there wintered. At At
this point the sun was invisible for l42
days, and the lowest temperature ever
recorded was experienced. The mer-
curry fell to ffty-nine deg. below zero,
and remained so for a fortnight, and at
one period reached 1O4 deg. below zero:
Sledge parties were fitted out, one OF
which travelled 200 miles to the east
ward, and the other went to the north,
proceeding on land up to eighty: three
deg. seven min., and thence on the ice
to eighty-three deg. twenty-one MIN.
Further on nothing but ice could be
seen, which was 80 rugged that scarcely q
mile of advance could be accomplished
daily. The foes in some places
measured $50 feet in thickness. -Four
men died from the effects Of the cold.
Finally, convinced that it was impossi-
BILE 10 get any nearer to the pole, and
seeing that his men were suooumbmg
under the hardships, while the Alert
herself had been much damaged by the
ice, Captain Mares started homeward,
leaving Smith sound on September 8
last.
This expedition, it will be remem-
bered, was fitted out with every aid to
polar exploration which science could
devise or the experience of the Oldest
Arctic explorers could suggest. That
it has failed to reach the pole is proof OF
the enormous difficulties to be over.
come in that undertaking, rather than OF
any inadequacy to the task OF those who
attempted it. Indeed, We may believe
that, after latitude eighty-two deg.
is reached, the obstacles augme. in
some compound ratio. The results
whioh have been obtained are, however,
of considerable importance. Captain
Mares has reached the highest northern
point ever attained, latitude eighty-threc
dog. twenty -one min. The Austrian e1-
pedition, which sailed in 1872, toward
Spitzbergen, only reached Cape Figely
in e;gbty-two deg. five min., and sighted
Gaps Vienna in eighty three deg. It is
remarkable, however, that tue Polaris,
i'll equipped as she was, reached eighty
two deg. sixteen min., and wintered in
eighty-one deg. thirty-eight min:, while
Hall, with sleighing party, pushed on
ward to eighty-two deg. thirty min.
Captain Mares has, therefore, advanced
ffty-one geographical miles further
north than the American explorer, and
has approached within four hundred
miles Of the pole.
President Land, usually marked on
Arctic maps, has no existence. Lady
Franklin's strait is really bay; and
from the fact that travel was conducted
on the ice to the highest point reached,
it would seem that no open polar sea
was encountered. The northernmost
point seen in Greenland was in latitude
eighty-two deg. ffty-seven min. Excel
lent coal was found near the place where
the Discovery wintered, and a number
of valuable scientific collections and OBJ
servations were made. The Pandora is
still in the ice, and was met by the Alert
on October l6, when she signaled call
WE'LL"