River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1888-05-10

during the early part of the century.
giving the name of Enderby TO n mass
Of land which they did not circumnav-
igate. The most important voyages
ever made to tho Antarctic regions
were those under the command Of
Captain James Ross. They were I'M
dertaken By scientific Englishmcn for
the purpose of magnetic OBJ
servatiOn. There were placed at
the disposal of Captain Ross
two vessels of limited tonnage,
the Erebus aud Terror The time oc-
cupied was from 1889 to 1913 In the
fall of 1899 the expedition started
from the Cape of Good Hope and
spent the brief summer in Kerguelen
island. The following season Tas-
mania was the point of departure 1t
reached and passed Auckland New
Years Day, 1871. entering the ice pack
immediately. Soon afterward land of
considerable extent was discovered.
which was called Victoria Land. Along
the shore fer the distance of four hun
dred and fifty miles. was a smooth
perpendicular wall of ice without
assure. rising from one hundred and
fifty to two hundred feet above the
water and descending eight hundred
feet below. Its surface was level and
over il could be seen n range of
mountains with two volcanoes. one
ten thousand feet high in n state Of
violent action. the other twelve thou
sand five hundred feet high and APP
parently extinct. New ice beginning
10 form. Captain Ross escaped north
ward with difficulty. aided by a strong
breeze. He went South again in No
vember He passed through eight hum
dred miles of floating ice and this time
reached as deg. IL min.. n higher
latitude than any one had then or has
since gone. He came north when the
seas were on the point of being closed
by the ice and passed the winter at
the Falkland Islands In December
he left Port Louis 10 go south, visiting
this time the islands discovered by
Dumont dUrvilie. In the summer Of
1913 he returned home. There have
been a few discoveries by other navi-
gators, but they were unimpor4ant
The last was the voyage of the Chal-
lenger in 1874. which added nothing
in the way of geographical or scien-
tiiic knowledge to that already in the
world possession.
The chief difficulties in approach
ing the Antarctic regions have been
specified. The land, whether it ex-
lists in the form of islands or con-
tinents. is in most cases surrounded
bv barrier of ice. even in summer
sometimes extending so far into the
water that it IS impossible 10 detect
the shore line. Few navigators have
been able 10 do more than
put foot on the land they
have discovered. None have been
able to penetrate into the interior. a
great part of them have been only
able to observe the land from the deck
Of their vessels The mass of floating
ice between the clear water and the
land is broad and difficult of passage.
Harbors where a ship could safely
winter seem never TO have been dis
covered Captain Ross came North
every winter. and it appears from his
narrative that it woull have been diff
iicult 10 have passed it there. even had
his vessels been built and prOvisiOned
like those Of the present day.
These are some of the problems the
new expedition will have TO solve. if
il goes with the serious purposes it is
said to entertain, and prepared with
every resource and expedient that the
many experiences in northern seas
have shown to be necessary. 1t can
accomplish little more than has al
ready been done unless it spends at
least one winter near the localities to
be explored. Whether this can be
ventured is the point to be determined.
Should the ship winter at the highest
latitude reached by Ross. or near it.
il might. in the early part of the fol-
lowing summer, go even nearer the
South Pole than any American expe-
lition has been to the North Pole. and
escape in time. 1t is 10 be remarked
that the explorations made thus far
have been in regions most convenient
TO such convenient points of departure
rs the Cape of Good Hope and Tama-
mia. Therefore the lands discovered
have been principally south. or south
east. or southwest of these points.
What exists ut other points about the
circle. what other islands or continents
there are to fill up the gaps, is abso-
luteiy unknown. San Francisco
Chronicle.