Oxford eagle. (Oxford, Lafayette Co., Miss.) 1876-current, 1888-05-03

tape Horn. got separated from tho
hcet with which il was associated. and
was driven to the southwark by stress
Of weather. Kerguelen island. which
IS n long distance from the Pole. was
discovered about the same time, and
reekonei in the southern cir
cumpelar region. Captain Cook
started well TO the southwark
in g Of his voyages. but COM
ing IN contact with numerous icebergs.
AMI fearing that lie would hnd it diff.
cult TO escape. he shaped his course
toward New Zealand A Russian nav
igator in 1870 discovered two small
islands not far from the Antarctic
circle. which he named after Peter the
Great and Alexander L II 1888 a
French commander. Dlmont d'UrviIle.
discovered several small islands in
nearly the same latitude. which he
named after Louis Philippe and Prince
de Jonvilie. He made Tasmania the
starting point Of his voyage.
The captains Of some whalers in the
employ Of the Enderby Company Of
London made numerous discoveries
durin. the early part Of the century.
giving the name Of Endcrby to a mass
II land which they did not circumnnv Nv
igate. The most Important voyages
ever made to tbs Antarctic regions
were thoss under the command of
Captain James Ross They were nm
deriaken By scientific Englishmen for
the purpose IL magnetic OBJ
servatiou. There were placed Mt
the disposal Of Captain Ross
two vessels Of limited tonnage.
the Ercbus and Terror. The time oe-
cupied was from 1882 10 1913 In the
fall Of 1899 tho x,edition started
from the Cape Of Good Hope and
spent the brief summer in kcrguelen
island. The following season Tas-
mania was the point of departure. 1t
reached and passed Auckland New
Years Day. 1911. entering the ice pack
Immediately. Soon aftcrward land Of
considerable extent was discovered.
which was called Victoria Land Along
the shore for the distance of four hun
drcd and fifty miles. was 4 smooth
perpendicular wah Of ice without
i~issure. rising from one hundred and
fifty to two hundred feet above the
water and descending eight hundred
feet below. Its surface was level anil
I'VE IL could be seen n range Of
mountains with two volcanoes. one
ten thousand feet high in n state u
vf.fmyt u,F.... a.. til - IL
sand five hundred feet high and APP
%parently extinct. New ice be rinning
TO foCm. Captain Ross escaped north
ward with difficulty. aided by a strong
breeze. He went South again in No
vember. He passed through eight hun
dred miles Of floating ice and this time
reached IS deg. IL min. a 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 wintes, Mt
the Falklasrd Islands. In December
he left Port Louis to go south. visiting
this timo the islands discover ed by
Dumont dUrvilIe. In the summer 81
1913 he retained home. There have
been a few discoveries By otisr nayi-
gators. but they were uninrportant.
The last was The voyage of the Chal-
lenger in 1874. which addtd nothing
in the way If geographical or scien-
tifie knowledge TO that air sady in the
worlds possession
The chief difficulties in. approach
ing the Antarctic regions have been
specified. Tho land, whether it ex-
ISIS in the form Of islands or con-
t%inents. il in most cases surrounded
by a barrier e ice, even in summer
sometimes ext ending So FIR into the
water that it IS impossible to detec,
the shore line. Few navigators have
been able TO do more than
put foot on cthe land they
have discovered. None have been
able to penetrate into the interior. A
great part of them have been only
able 10 observe the land from the deck
If their vessels The mass of floating
ice between the clear water and the
land Is broad n III diff of passage.
Harbor+ where 4 ship could safely
winter seem ne Etr To have been dis
covered. Captab Ross came North
every winter, ane it appears from his
narrative that it swOuII have been diff
heult TO have pas sed it there. even had
his vessels been .9uilt and provisione,I
like those OF the present day.
These are ON Of the problems the
new expedition will have 10 solve. if
ii goes with the serious purposes it is
said to entertain and prepared with
every resource Sa Il expedient that the
many experiments in northern seas
have shown to he neeessarv. II can
accomplish little more than has al
ready been done unless it spends at
least n winter near the localities to
be explored. Whether this can be
ventured is the poirst L be determined.
Should the ship wimser Mt the highest
latitude reached by Ross. or near il
it might. in the early part Of the fol-
lowing summer. 90 even nearer the
South Pole han any Amersan expe-
dition has been 10 tire North Pole. and
escape in time. L. i 10 be remarked
thai the explorations made thus far
have been in regions most convenient
to such convenient points of departure
- The Csas af Cod Ha ne AMI Ts..
MIS- 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 mp the gaps. is ALSO
lutely unknOvu.--San Fraacisee
gBrouieIs