The prison mirror. [volume] (Stillwater, Minn.) 1887-1894, 1891-06-18
Another Polar Expedition.


brigantine Kite, sailed from New York
June for Whale Island. On the west coast
of Greenland. II degrees and 20 minutes
north latitude. The vessel had Oh board
Lieut.. Peary. of the United States Navy,
his wife. and five men. who designed max
ing from that point an overland eXplOra.
ton, in northeaster!y course. to as high
latitudes as possible, determining, if practi-
cable. the northern coast line of Greenland,
and acquiring all obtainable information
relative to the polar seas. Explorers have
many times been much further north along
the coast line, and no great difficulty is an
tcipated in reaching the point sailed for. at
the foot of Humboldt Glacier, about the
middle of July. Here the coast is bOrdered
by mountains, which it is the intention of
Lieut.. Peary to climb. carrying his sledges
and abundant supplies. with the idea that
he will then be at the surface of a great ice
plateau, which he intends to make his high
way to the far north.
1t is the intention of the explorer to get
well established in winter quarters before
the four months season OF darkness and
extreme cold sets in, and supplies sufficient
w ioSU CllC pal ~ lOl UillCC yCdIO udVO UCtu
taken. although it is said that game is
abundant in that section. With the north
ward movement of the sun in the spring,
the real work of the expedition will COM
mence, the journey nOrthward being made
on snow shoes and with sledges. 1t matters
not how deep the snow may be. III Lieut.
Peary's opinion, and he is an experienced
snow traveller. counting "deep. soft snow
as the perfection of roads," but chasms and
ragged ice. which he expects mainly to
avoid in the route chosen. are the only OBJ
stacles from which difficulty is anticipated.
But. even if Greenland extends only
little way beyond Lieut.. LOckwood'S fur
thest point, Lieut.. Peary has before him a
round trip journey of about l. 200 miles.
Just as Nansen travelled, now over hard
crust. and then through deep. soft snow,
Lieut.. Peary is likely at times to find sledge
hauling very hard work. Gen. Greedy be-
lieves that the inland ice is not coterminOus
with the north coast of Greenland and if
this theory is correct, Lieut. Peary will
probably find it difficult to reach the north
coast by the route he proposes. for he and
his comrades could not travel far overland.
packing their provisions on their backs. At
any rate, if defeated in his main purpose,
he will perhaps be able to follow the ice
edge east to the east coast. and completely
great ice cap of Greenland.
There is also aboard the Kite another
party known as the West Greenland Ex-
plOring Expedition. of the Academy of
Natural Sciences, of Philadelphia. This
party consists of Prof. Angelo Heilprin,
leader and geologist; Prof. Benjamin Sharp
and Prof. j. F. Holt, biologists; DR.. VIM.
E. Hughes, ornithologist; DR.. w. H. Burk,
botanist. and correspondent of the Phila-
delphia Ledger; Levi W. Mengel. entomol-
ogist; DIR. R. NJ Keely. surgeon; Alexander
c. Kenealy, who will keep the journal of
the expedition.
company Lieut.. Peary on the Kite to Whale
Sound. Thence the vessel will return di-
rect to Upernavik and from there to Disco
Bay. Some of this expedition will disem-
bark there; others will cruise on the Kite in
whatever direction seems best to them to
obtain the information they seek.
The land division will explore the interior
of the country. in particular an unnamed
mountain back OF Disco Bay. of which ge-
OgrapherS know nothing, of whose deniZens
biologists and of whose fora bOtanists are
ignorant. Returning southwark. several
fiords will be explored, and the height of
glaciers be determined as accurately as pos
sible.
Nedl OOuoHdNeu CNtIc Is duOGilcI uu-
named and unknown mountain which will
be climbed and examined. From there the
party will 20 to lvigtut and thence to st.
Johns. Newfoundland. Everywhere its
members will make geological and bOtan-
cal collections and try to inform them
selves of Greenland's geological formation.
The last named party hope to be home again
about the middle OF next September. The
expense of both expeditions are borne in
part by the Academy of Natural Sciences
and in part by private subscriptions
Scientific American.