The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1893-09-09
PEARY's SUCCESS.
His Achievements So Far Excel Those of
Previous Expeditions.
New York SUM-

New Work SUM-
A few weeks ago, when idiotic de-
spatches from St. Johns predicted the
failure of the expedition because Peary
would reach Melville Bay month later
than in 1891, the Sun said he would reach
the bay when it was almost certain to
be nearly free of ice, and that he would
probably make quick passage across to
his winter.camp He made in fact, the
quickest transit, with one exception,
ever made of this bay, which, month
or two earlier, was doubtless packed
with ice. 1t took him three weeks in
July, 1891, to cross this stretch of water,
but on July 81 of this year he crossed it
| in just fifty minutes more than a day.
The quickest previous passages of the
bay were made by Hayes late in Au-
gust, in fifty-four hours; by Hall, on
the Polaris, late in August, in twenty
hours and forty-five minutes, the best
time on record; by the Mares expedition,
late in July, in thirty-four hours; and
by Greedy, on July 30-31, in thirty-six
hours. Peary's good luck is worth men
tioning, for passages across Melville Bay
like these are of rare occurrence. Even
under apparently favorable circum-
stances, vessels are likely to be beset by
rapidly closing ice foes and imprisoned
for months as Sir Leopold McClintock
was for all of one winter. Lieut. Peary
arrived in Bowdoin Bay with four times
las many dogs as he obtained during his
entire sojourn in north Greenland in
1891-92 He has not yet drawn at all
upon the resources of the native friends
among whom he is now living, and who
supplied all his draughf animals befores
No Smith Sound explorer ever got. so
many dogs together as Peary now has at
command; and never had one such good
luck in securing, by a few days work,
| supply of dog food for an entire winter.
| Two wears ago he killed four 'walruses in
| his first water hunt. This year, on the
| same grounds in Whale Sound, he
captured twenty-four in an afternoon.
| When darkness came, in the middle OF
| November, two years ago, Peary's
hunters had bagged a little over thirty
| reindeer. This year seventeen reindeer
rewarded one nights hunt In Septem-
! Der, two years ago. his men made two
vain attempts to struggle far up on the
| island ice, to make cache of supplies
| for the spring sledge journey. This year
| the inland ice is comparatively easy OF
access from the more favorably situated
camp, and, before the Falcon left, many
Of the stores for the trip north had
| already been placed on the ice cap, and
| it was expected to complete the work by
| September /. If Peary's coming dis
| coyeries are in proportion to his remark
| able success thus far, great things are In
store for him in the White North.
His Eskimo friends are again gathering
around his camp to winter near him:
Some of them travelled two hundred
miles, two years ago, to visit him. They
never expected to see him again, and we
may imagine the joy with which they
wecomed the " Kapitansoak" who returns
to them with large supply of odds nd
ends that are of priceless value to this
| isolated people.
The north Greenland expedition has
| before it the prospect of wintering under
the most comfortable conditions. May
| it be party of trained athletes, at the
next sunrise, all ready for the arduous
work Of the spring campaign.