Pawtucket tribune. (Pawtucket, R.I.) 1890-189?, 1894-03-14
WALTER wELLMAN.

Mr.. Wellman was accompanied by
three other Americans-Professor Owen
b. French, late OF the United States coast
and geodetic survey and an experienced
and capable scientist; DIR. Thomas B.
Mohun, a successful Washington phys-
clan, and Charles G. Dodge, the artist
and photographer of the expedition. The
enterprise is und er the leadership OF Mr..
Wellman, and the three men named are
his lieutenants.
Ten hardy young Norwegians, am
bilious and experienced in arctic explora-
ton, will join the party in Norway, and
the expedition will sail from Tromsoe,
Norway. for the islands of Spitzbergrn
about May 1. At Danes island, which is
very near the 18th parallel-that point Of
latitude so far north that many explorers
have never reached and few have ever
passed it-headquarters will be est" -
lished, and then the party will steam D
the edge of the great ice pack about a =
gree farther north. After landing is
effected the steamer will return TO Danes
island, and about May 10 or 10 the dash
for the pole will begin.
To Overcome Obstacles.
That marvellous new metal, aluminium,
has been utilized in the construction Of
sledges, boats and other apparatus, and
thus equipped with far lighter parap r
MALTA than any previous explorer Ar.
Wellman expects to be able to push on
north at the rate of from 12 to 20 miles e
day. As he will have only about 0
miles to travel before the pole is reach, |,
he expects to either reach that goal or n
point very near 1t in 80 days. He will
then return to the edge of the pack in 80
lay 10 az or W. r1i.H n n
and he will then return home.
Mr.. Wellman has carefully studied the
great problem before him and expects to
profit by the knowledge gained by
previous explorers who have traversed
the pack and to avoid their mistakes. His
early start Is for the purpose of getting
far north before the pack begins its drift
toward the south. Away back In 1927 Sir
Edward Parry pushed on northward over
the pack at the rate of from 10 to % miles
day, but his heavy equipage compelled
him to break his loads into parts and pass
from five to seven times over the same
road.
To Profit by others Experience.
Other explorers, handicapped with old
time sledges and boats, have been COM
PEELED to progress in the same slow man
ner, but Mr.. Wellman believes that with
his light aluminium outfit retracing his
steps will be unnecessary, and that every
mile travelled will take him a mile farther
toward the pole. At the start the drift
of the ice pack will not be against him,
and whan he returns later in the season il
will assist him in his homeward journey.
Mr.. Wellman carries with him his
aluminium boats and sledges-the first
ever built in America-and tests have
demonstrated that they are by far the
lightest and at the same time the very
strongest boats and sledges of their size
that the world has ever seen. The entire
equipment of the party of IA will be about
$500 pounds, and as 40 hardy draft dogs
will assist in carrying it, the average
weight per man and dog will be about
100 pounds.
News For the World.
One novel feature OF Mr.. Wellman's
scheme Of exploration is that il is strictly
a newspaper expedition, and IL Mr.. Well
mans plans are carried out the world will
be apprised of his progress toward the
pole, thing that has never before been
done In the case OF any prev ious polar eX-
petition. Mem bers OF his party will be
sent back from time TO time TO the edge
Of the ice pack with letters describing the
progress of the expedition and the dis
coveries made by the explorers. At the
edge of the ice pack the dispatches will
be taken on board Mr.. Wellman's
steamer. which will return TO Norway,
whence the world will receive the news.
Whether Mr.. Wellmnn's dash for the
pole will be successful or not remains to
be seen, but IL his novel plan is even
partly carried out he will succeed In reach
Ing degree of latitude farther north
than that reached by any previous eN-
plorer.