The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1878-11-11
POLAR RESEARCM.

NNsANNes@s
cncc commanded bY, Captain George +.
tyson, whicllwA one OF the vessels de-
signed to participate in Captain Howgatc's
expedition to the NortlrPole, atordsanotll-
er Illustration Of the folly Of all, human
efforts to gather farther knowledge Of the
secrets Of naturctha lcbeyond thebound-
aries Of the region Of perpetual leo and
snow. For more than thousand years
the people Of various nations have ut
times periled their lives to solve the mys-
ferries which lie beyond the Arctic Circle,
hut their efforts donotappcar to have con-
ierrcd any benefits upon mankind to of
set the priyations aud hardshps endured,
aud the loss OF tho lives Of brave and
heroic men in contcnlipg with the dangers
of the elements. Toward the close Of the
fifteenth century, and during thesixtecnth,
the northern nations OF Europe, especially
the English and Dutch, became deeplyintcr-
cs,cd in explorations in thisportion of the
globe. in the belief TINT northwest pms
sage to the East Indies could bo found. 1t
was with this object that the voyNgesofthe.
Cabo,s were made in lioj-l609. After the
lapse OF some years, in 1858, All effort was
nnde to find a northeast passage by an cx-
pcdition consisting Of three ships, which,
entering the Arctic Ocean, reached as far
As the southern portion OF Nova Zcmbla,
and were Obliged 10 return. Sir Hugh
Willoughby, with tho officers and crews OF
,wo of the vessels, were frozen to death,
but Captain Chancellor, in the remaining
vessel, made his escape. In 1904, 1896 and
1897 the Dutch fitted out three different
expeditions. Tie last, under the command
oi Captain 1Iyp, was crushed and disabled
by ice, so that he and his companions
were obliged to pass the winter in hut,
erected for tho purpose, from which they
rscaped BY an overland journey in the
spring. All further attempts to pass
around Nova Zembla to the northeast
were unsuccessful until 1871, when
Cap,ain Garrison. rounded it in small
Swedish vessel. The i'll success Of
these attempts to find northeast
passage drew the attention OF the English
10 the possibility OF crossing from ocean to
ocean in the direction OF tho Pole, and, be-
tween 1906 aud 1876, four unsuccessful Mt
tcrnpts were made in this direction. The
search ior u northwest passage was again
renewed in ISIS under Sir John Ross, and
again in 1915 by Sir John Franklin, no
member OF whose company over returned.
The search was, however, continued until
the discovery OF the passage in 1850 by Sir
Robert Mcclure. The northwest passage,
found BY Mcclure, is between Banks and
Prince Albert lands, through Prince Of
Wales Strait, Melville Sound, Barrow
Strait and Lancaster Sound, and may be
entered from other points, but it is OF no
practical importance for the purposes OF
commerce. The explorations OF DR.. Kane
in 1853 and DR.. Hayes in 1850, through
Smith sound and Kennedy Channel, revived
the belief in an open polar sca--a belief
that has been entertained for 200 years,
and which sea was represented upon maps
rs early US zoos. The probability OF such
II polar sea was advocated by the Russian
explorer Wranglc, who commanded an
exploring expedition from 1920 to 1928,
and Middcndors, another Russian cxplor-
cr. Dr. Kane, also, who commanded the
second Grinncll expedition in lSoS'55
after the discoveries Of Admiral lngle-
field in Smith Sound and Sir Edward Bel
cher in Wellington Channel, became con-
WINGED that there was somewhere, between
50 deg. north and tho Pole, sea with a
mildcr climate than the region south OF it.
Ills expedition in lSJ3toSmith Sound was
ior the purpose OF discoveringit, and Nor
ion, one OF his officers and a companion,
after reaching north latitude 81 deg. q
min, saw what they supposed to be an
open sea to the northeast, but Captain
Halls expedition, in lS7l-'73, proved that
Morris was mistaken, and the water seen
by him is now known MS Robcson's chan
mel. It's not known at present what tho
result wifi be upon tho expedition to the
North Pole, of which the vessel just re.
turned formed so important an adjunct,
hut 1t is hoped for ut least one generation
no more lives will be pcrillel or treasure
wasted in efforts to obtain knowledge OF
unknown regions, which the courage and
daring OF tho most skllful navigators have
Tor centuries failed to secure, and which,
even II obtainablc, can hardly be of any
real service to mankind, i'll comparison
with the risks Of life and hardshipsof those
who engage in such a hopeless service.
TIE Gentle women OF Utah send out to
the people OF the United States, interested
in the moral weliareaof the country, n
powerful appeal TO use their influence
against the spread of polygamy. It lis adj
dressed more especially to the Christian
women OF the land, and contains facts not
only detrimental to our civilization, but
humiliating in every way to our national
pride. The decay OF every nation that
once ruled the world is directly tracc0ble
to tho very evilagainstthc spread ofwhich
in this country these women enter their
solemn protest. The student Of history
searches in vain fora greater enemy of
civilization. 1t evelcd Babylon in the
dust, scattered the jewish race to the
four corners OF the earth, ruined the
Mother OF Arts, and made possible tho
conquest Of Rome by tho andals OF the
North. It lowered Spain, the conqucror Of
tho New World, to a third.rate nation, and
,nnde Italy for centuries an eye.soro Of