The free press. (Poplarville, Miss.) 1890-19??, 1893-01-26
THE NORTH POLE.
Another Attempt to Explore the
Arctic Circle.
An Expedition VIII Leave Nor
way Next June.

iof Nansen, is about to start on all
other expedition in search of tho
North Poe. He returned in 1889
from a remarkable voyage across
Greenland. DR.. Nansen recently
came from Norway to London, where
he has lecured before the Royal
Geographical. Society on his proposed
expedition. The explorer is over six
feet tall, finely built and of the ideal
Scandinavian type. Speaking with
an English interviewer of his new cx-
petition, he said:
''Thc object of my expedition is of
course purely scientific. The expedi-
tionary party will consist of twelve
men all told. l shall be in absolute
command, and everybody on board,
scientists or sailors. will have to obey
me implicitly. There cannot be more
than one will in such an undertaking
as this. ! shall have two engineers,
and perhaps five or six sailors. shall
choose as many of my scientific people
as possible from among men who are
likewise accustomed to a seafaring
life. l shall also have ice-pilots and
harpooncrs for sealing and hunting.
It will be for them to provide
us with fresh food. The ice vikings
arc admirably fitted for the work in
view. They live all the year, from
spring to winter, in Arctic solitudes.
Born and bred in the north Of Nor
way, they spend most of their lives in
n form Of toll which exposes them to
all the rigors Of frigid climate, and
are thus Injured to the very hardships
which the members of an expedition
to the north pole will have to encoun-
ter. Some of them are masters and
owners of small scalers.
"With this party shall leave Nor
way early in June next and sail direct
to Nova Zembla. Here we shall stop
to revictual and to examine the state
of the ice. So soon as the condition
of this permits we sha Il leave for the
Kara Sea, probably early in July.
Skirting the Siberian coast and pass
ing Cape TscheHuskin, the most
northcrly point of the Old World, /
shall pass on SO far as the mouth of
the River Lena. Leaving the coast
at this point l shall start i'll north
crly direction along the western
coast of the Island of Kotelnai, the
most westerly of the Liakov, or New Si-
berian Group, and shall continue in this
direction until the pack ice renders
further navigation impossible. We
shall do our best 10 force the ship
through the ice, but we shall at las t
reach point where we must stop.
This will probably bring us to Sep
tember, and VIC shall in this way get
to some distance north of the New
Siberian Islands, but l cannot say
how far, as no one has ever been there
before. When navigation becomes no
longer practicable, l shall have
nothing left but to ram the ship into
the ice as far rs possible and stick
there. Having rammed the ship into the
ice foc the wintcr-possibly for ever,
as | don't ex .ect we shall be able to
move until we reach open water on
the other side of the Pole--we shal
have to be contented for the time be.
ing with p licy of mastery inactiv.
ity. We shall be continually moving
in northerly direction. Assisted by
nature. instead of lighting against
her. We expect to be taken by the
drifting of the ice foes right across
The Polar region down into the East
Greenland Sea, between Spiizbergen
and Greenland, having in this way
reached and passed the Pole.
ave take with us provisions for
five years, and it is possible that this
may be the period during which we
shall be at the mercy of ice. On this
poin', however, cannot say anything
of definite character. Entirely de-
pending upon the current, we shall be
drifted first to one side and then to the
o;her. but always in northerly di-
rectioD, until, as have already said,
we emerge into the Greenland sea,
whence we shall return to Norway.
Duviutr Tho 1,acf aityht rponths 7 7E0