National Republican., 1883-09-07
IN THE ARCTIC SEAS.
Work Of the Signal Service in the Polar
Regions
Report OF Lieut.. PoVyoll-Observatio
Made and Grand sights Witnessed.

Work OF tho signal service in the Arctic
regions" is the title Of the combined reports
of Lieut. Joseph s. Powell, Mr.. w. NJ. Beobe,
and Lieut.. p. Henry Ray, just issued by the
chief signal officer of the army. Lieut..
PowclPs report is very comprehensive and
complete, and contains longitudinal compare
sons, and other interesting astronomical and
meteorological statistics. The expedition
under comman Of Lieut.. Powell sailed from
San Francisco juno "a, 1882, on the chartered
schooner Leo for tho relief of tho Point Bar
row, Alaska, party. Head winds and gales
were encountered during tho passage across
tho Pacific, and tho Shumagin islands were
not sighted until July Ia. Then after oncount-
ering dense fogs and heavy gales duringwhich
the vessel was imperiled, she finally made
for St. Michael's, a station of the Alaska Fur
company, for the purpose of securing the
services of q cook, the original cook having
been taken seriously i'll during tho voyage.
st. Michael's was reached July 90, and after
much persuasion native named kan-u-ark
was shipped as cabin boy. The difficulty in
shipping q native was duo to the fact that the
news of the loss of the Jeanette had reached
the people and they were 10th to venture
abroad in the white mans ships.
The report says "The savage man all the
world over is prone to superstitious fears, and
it is not at all to be wondered at that the
simple native of these shores should be con-
siderably impressed when he sees the mighty
Oomiaks' of the white man go away in the
gloom of tho mysterious north ard return no
more. A jealous Spirit seems to the poor ma
tive to reign over these gloomy solitudes,
who will not permit the secrets of his realm
| to be explored with impunity, and when the
mighty 'Tungah' seizes upon the large ves-
sells of the white man, and dashes them to
pieces in his anger, terror thrills through the
poor savage, and he refuses to venture within
the reach of the baleful power of the icy
north, so potent for evil"
st. Michaels. as its name implies, is not q
colony. Tho only whites there are the agent
for the Alaska Fur company, his wife, one as
sistant and the United States weather OBJ
server. As the vessel sailed into the harbor
she was greeted with a salute by mountain
howitzers. Upon reaching Behring sea the
vessel encountered heavy gale, with weather
so thick as to prevent further progress. On
the morning of tho fourth day, while making
for Plover bay, steamer was sighted, which
proved to be the revenue cutter Corwin,
which came alongside and towed the Leo up
the bay. After several days, bufleting the
elements, the harbor of Port Clarence was
finally made, and mot o moment too soon."
says the report, ~ for the gale increased in
fury, and had we still been exposed to it off a
lee shore the Leo would have ended her voy-
age then and there and all on board gone to
the bottom"
The wind was estimated as blowing seventy
miles an hour, and the sea ran SO high that
had the ship strucle she would have been
dashed to pieces in few minutes. After
remaining at that anchorage for three days
the expedition sailed on its way to Point
Barrow, passing through Behring strait on
the morning of July IA, and crossing the
Arctic circle the same day. Cape Lisburne,
the northwestern point of America, was
sighted on the fourteenth, and on the twenty
first the vessel came to anchor Off the supply
station at OoglaaIuie. Tho supplies were un-
loaded and the crew visited the station.
The magnetic instruments in use there are
the unitilar (declinometer), dip circle, and
bifilar. All the buildings about tho station
are substantial, and tho dwelling house is
very comfortable. No sickness occurred
among the station men during the winter,
enforced by Lieut.. Roy, in charge, relative
to exercise. The winter had been long and
severe, and hourly meteorological observa-
tions were begun Oct. II, and hourly mag
netic on Dec. 1. The magnetic work was es-
pecially trying during the vory cold weather,
for delicate instruments had to be manipu-
lated and read in temperatures sometimes as
low as 45o below zero. AT such times it was
almost impossible to touch brass or other
metals with the ungloved hand. From Dec
/, 1881, to Aug. l. 1882 over 10000 readings
of the magnetic instruments alone were re-
corded, and similar amount of meteorologi-
cal work done.
} Tho station is located on Cape Smith, low
, ridge fifteen feet above the water level The
native village of Ooglaamie, containing about
80 "igloos" and 150inhabitants, is situated a
half mile to the southwest. Point Barrow is
ten miles to the northeast The only vege-
tation is patches of sickly green moss, lich-
ems and other cryptogamous growths, and a
few simple flowers. During eight months in
the year the earth is frozen, and during the
remaining four months it thaws to depth
of one foot from the surface, and below
that depth remains permanently lro-
zen probably 150 to 200 feet The
length of days and nights vary from seventy
two days to as many minutes. The tempera-
ture in summer rarely reaches 600, and then
at any time snow storm may occur. The
lowest temperature experienced was 6O0 be-
low zero
A three day gale occurred in January, dur
ing which the wind reached velocity of 1Ol
miles an hour. Sand and coarse gravel were
carried along in Clouds and wood and iron
looked as if it had been subjected to strong
securing process, being worn and polished
Exposed glass was ground SO as to be almost
Opaque, and the ice at sea, which previously
up into fragments.
"The song of this icy sea-" says Lieut.
PowelPs report, "is very peculiar one. 1t
is not loud, yet it can be heard to q great lis
tance; it is neither surge nor a swash, but a
kind of slow, crashing, groaning shrieking,
sound, in which sharp, silvery tinkles mingle
with the low, thunderous undertone Of a
rushing tempest. 1t impresses one with the
idea of nearness and distance at the same
time. When this confused fantasia is heard
from afar through the stiffness of this Arctic
zone, the effect is strangely weird and solemn
AS If it were the distant hum Of an active
living world breaking across the boundaries
of silence, solitude, and death"
The sun set on Nov. 16 and did not rise
again until Jan. 90, remaining below the
horizon for seyenty-two days. On May 16
the sun ceased to set, and from that day until
July go there was continual day. Auroral
displays were numerous and bright. On such
occasions the sky became a gorgeous canopy
of flames, all splendor, color, and motion.
Silvery rays, with golden bases, and fringed
with gold or emerald green, danced and
whirled around the zenith, and broad curtains
Of light flung across the sky in every form Of
graceful curve and convolution, shook rain
bow tints from every fold, and the behoder
became bewildered and lost in dazzling bril-
liancy."
Lieut.. Ray, In making trip southwark in
| March, discovered lnrne ri yer flowing In n