, 1880-07-01
Is the Jeanette Safe.

Mr.. Bennett s exploring Vessei, the Jsah-
nette. 1t would not be reasonable, after
considering all the facts relating to her
to suppose that she is in the slightest
peril In the first place, in spite of all
reports to the contrary, she is strong and
well fitted for the undertaking. She
was purchased by Mr.. Bennett OF Allen
Young, who was with McClin.ock, the
Artic explorer, and is himself one of the
most experienced Artic navigators.
When her owner parted with her, it was
with 30 much confidence that he offered
70 take her back at the selling price at
the end of the three years Of expected alb
sence. Lieutenant DeLong had her put
at once into dry dock, and became salts.
fed by boring that she was perfectly
sound. Aft the mizzenmast she Is
almost entirely of mahogany. Her hull
is sheathed with Australian ironwood
four inches in thickness. She is so
modelled as to rise easily from the water
when nipped by the ice, wherein lies the
chief danger to oil vessels traversing Ar,
tic regions. Her form is therefore as
great an element Of safety as her supe-
rior strength. Previous voyages have
tested her. capacity thoroughly. Three
times she was nipped in Melville Bay
with such force as TO be raised several
feet above tho. snrfaca of the water, but
she escaped without suffering the slight
est damage She was further strength
ened against ice pressure by having ten
feet of her bow filed in with solid dead
wood, heavily bolted, Just before leaving
San Francisco. These are some of the
qualities which the Jeanette possesses,
and which will stand her in good stead
in all the trouble she is likely to have in
shs region Of perpetual snow. and
ice. 1t is probable that no ship ever
left on similar mission better fitted to
encounter the incidental hardships and
with powers Of strength and endurance
better able to survive them.
The Intentions of the commander of
the Jeanette seem to have been misap-
pretended. His design was to move
slowly and discreetly. Ho only meant
to make Wrangel Land before the close
of the last season, and establish himself
at some convenient point thereon for the
Winter This Summer he was to ex-
plore and take his vessel up along the
shore Of Wrangel Land, never leaving it
nor allowing himself 30 be drawn away
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rents. His supreme effort to reach the
Pole was to be made at the earliest pos
sible moment in the Spring or Summer
of 1881. Even then he had no thought
of taking his vessel away from the solid
land, on & which he. placed his
chief reliance. His northward trip was
to be made with sledges only, striking,
boldly outfrom the northernmost point
of Wrangel Land, should he happen to
find that unknown region TO be an
island of limited area, over the vast sur
face Of the frozen ocean extending to-
ward the Pole That there is danger in
carrying out such plans is obvious, but
it is rather to the hardy adventurers
than to their vessel. 1t is further evil
dent that whatever peril there may be,
it has not yet been encountered. 1t is
as yet remote and intangible. "a
The needless alarm seems to have
risen from the. report OF the returned
whalers, who saw the smoke of the Jean
nette and thought they perceived the
course she was pursuing. There were
two weeks Of fine weather after this,
during which time, she might have ma
terially changed her position, and had
abundant opportunity to get into safe
Winter quarters. The deserted whalers
are supposed to be somewhere near the
point where she was last seen, which
may be hundred miles from where she
now is. AS one mile in the frozen zone
is as ten in temperate attitudes, the ex-
plorers may know nothing Of the neigh
borhood of their imperiled countrymen.
Should they be nearer than this est
mated distance, and should they all come
together, serious inroad would be
made on the stores Of the Jeanette,
which would render her premature re-
turn to lower latitudes necessary. Such
a contingency, however, seems impossi-
ble
But who, it may be asked, is response.
bic for sending men into these cold
northern waters in pursuit of the retreat.
ing whales in ships that may be merci-
lessly crushed when they are caught
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