The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1884-12-13
Our 69lio.
THE SOUTH POLE.
What is known about that end.
Early Adventures-POints0 of Difference
Between the Two Frigid ZOnes-FIOat-
ing Islands.

Almost everybody has heard something
concerning the North Pole, however vague
may be the impression produced by the
term. To man who believes that the
earth is fat-and there are such men, even
in the last quarter of the nineteenth century
the Pole must appear rather useless
appendage, says the Brooklyn Eagle. To
men generally the North Pole is that point
on globular earth which is always nearest
to the north, which is equi-distant from
all parts Of the equator or equinoctial line,
which has in it no east and no west, and in
which six months daylight is followed by
six months darkness No one has ever
seen the North Pole, so far as human tes-
timony goes and, therefore, no one can
say whether the spot is occupied by dry
land, open sea, or perpetual ice. At the
recent meeting in Montreal of the British
Association for the Advancement of Sci
ence, Lieutenant Greely confidently ex-
pressed his belief in the existence of an
open polar sea, while other explorers as
confidently maintained that the Pole is sit
uated in region of perpetual ice.
But how many among us know even
this much concerning the North Pole?
There is certainly South Pole, forming
the other extreme end of the axis of the
earth, point having the maximum of
south latitude, and enjoying continuous day
at the season when the North Pole is yelled
in continuous night, and vice versa. So far
as is known, while the northern hemisphere
has about half as much again of ocean and
sea as of dry land, in the southern the pro-
words, continents spread much less extern
sively over the southern than the northern
half of the earth's surface.
The old geographers had notion that,
in order to balance the constituents of the
North, the Southern, or Antarctic ocean
ought to have some great continents like
wise, and for two hundred years or so, oc-
casional voyages were made in the hope of
discovering some such stretches of dry land.
Juan Fernandez, just three centuries ago,
reached a pleasant land WHICH is now sup
posed to have been New Zealand-no con-
tinent, certainly, and three thousand miles
distant from the South Pole Twenty
years later Dutch whaler under Dirk
Gerritz was driven by storm as far as the
high, snowy islands now known as the
South Shetlands, nearly due south of Cape
Horn. About the beginning of the follow
ing century Pedro Fernandez de Quiros,
searching about for the supposed continent,
lighted upon the comparatively small dots
known to Hsodern geographers as Pitcarin's
Islands and the New Hebrides. Many
other islands were discovered in the vast
southern ocean between the times of James
|. and George III.-some of them by
mariners who had been driven out of their
intended courses, and others by men who
boldly steered south in search of anything
new; but the first to penetrate within or
southwark of the Antarctic circle with an
avowed purpose ofascertaining whether land
orwater occupied that dreary region was the
renowned Captain Cook, A little more
than a century ago he discovered Sandwich
land, but effected little toward the solution
of the great problem. So disappointed
were the geographers at these negative re-
suits that they removed from their maps
the term Terra Australia, which had long
been employed to denote supposed south
ern continent
We come down to the present century,
when one navigator discovered the South
Orkneys, another Palmer's land, third
Alexander's land, fourth Enderby's land
and Graham's land-all mere little patches
in midst of vast ocean. One mariner,
Weddell, reached further south than any
predecessor, so far as known, having at
tanned the 18th degree of south latitude,
within ahouta thousand miles Of the South
Pole,
When the Governments of Europe and
America began to send out expeditions to
those regions there was additional proba-
bility that valuable results would be attain
ed. Louis Philippe dispatched Admiral
Dumont d Urville in 1897 with the cor
vettes Astrolabe and Zelee, and during a
series of three years voyaging many islands
were discovered as well as Louis Phillippe's
Land and Adele Land-the latter named
after d Urville's wife, The United States
Government about the same time placed
the ships Vincennes and Peacock under
Lieutenant Wilkes, with instructions to
push as far south as possible, and look out
for new lands. The Porpoise, the Sea-
Gull, and the Flying Fish afterward Joined
in the search, and during four years much
ocean was explored for the first time, but
the valuable results were few in number.
Wilkes claimed to have discovered an
Antarctic continent, but he afterwards
found that it was D'Urville's previously
discovered Adele land. The poor Sea
Gull met with disaster somewhere and
was never more heard of.
At length we come to the memorable
expedition of Sir James Ross, more COM
plete and better conducted than any pre-
viously known The British Association
suggested it in 1888, not so much for
discovering new lands in the south as to
obtain information concerning the South
Magnetic Pole-a matter of much impor-
tance to science. The Government, re-
spending to the appeal, fitted out the Ere
bus and Terror and placed them under
James Ross, with Crozier his second in
command. They left England in S39 and
did not see it again for four years.
One little fact among the important dis
coveries of Ross will tell us what naviga-
tors have long known, that regions near the
South Pole are much cooler than those at
an equal distance from the North. On the
midsummer day of that hemisphere the
temperature, even during the hottest hours,
was never more than eight degrees above
the freezing point. Ross first sighted large,
compact icebergs in latitude 63; and four
degrees further south brought him to the
edge of the pack a vast field of hummock
ice extending over an unknown number of
miles. The men were supplied with extra
warm clothing, although it was only fort
night after the longest day, and prepara-
tions were made for dashing through the
foe ice and hummocks at points where the
more solid packs could be avoided. One
observation made by Ross is worth quoting
here: 'sIn the evening remarkable ap-
pearance of land was reported. During
several hours number of pointed hills,
apparently covered with snow, were seen,
Il L