The evening world. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1887-1931, 1894-09-27
FROM the ARCTICS.
Members of the Wellman Expe-
dition Arrive on the Spree.
Their Story Of Hardships and Mis-.
haps in Ioy Regions.
Already Forming Plans for An
other Attempt.

The steamship Spree. which arrived at
Quarantine last evening. had among
her passengers the following Arctic ex-
plorers: Prof. Walter Wellman. Prof.
o. B. French, of the Coast and Geodetic
Survey. of Washington, who was astro-
nomical observer of the party; DR..
Thomas r. Mohun, medical officer, and
Charles C. Dodge. artist and photog-
rapher all of whom reside in Washing
ton, ID. c.
They left here last March bound for
the North Pole via Norway, and have
been gone a little over six months.
Prof. Wellman. who was in charge of
the party, gives the following ac-
count OF the expedition:
I'VE left the town OF Thomso. In Nor
way, May !, on the steamboat Rang
valid Jarl, with twenty-five persons, all
told sixteen of whom belonged to the
expedition and nine to the crew. We
reached Spitzbergen, which Is in latitude
79.45, May 7. There we deposited a
large quantity of provisions, leaving in
| charge Prof. Oyen, a Norwegian geolo-
gist who was to study the glaciers.
north coast of Spitzenbergen,. the Jarl
was headed for the southern island, $50
miles to the northeast After several
battles with the ice we reached Table
Island, May IL, and were then in. lati-
tude $3.50, or within $50 miles of the
North Pole, or about $40 miles south Of
point reached by The Sod and
thus far in eleven days from the time
We left civilization, having covered as
much ground In that time as other ex-
petitions had in months or even years.
up to this time the season had prom
ised to be a favorable one, and we hoped
in few days to be able to set out on
our journey over the ice pack to the
| and vast quantities OF broken ice went
drifting past. On the. nth the Jarl
was forced to the north, a little past
the eighty-first parallel, and was then
driven back by the floating ice, through
which no steamer, though she were as
large as the Spree, could have forced
Finding what appeared to be, per,
Walden Island, the expedition left the
sha avns "y three sm wGrs boets ye
draught dogs from Belgium. Our course
was to the eastward, skirting the north
ern shore OF northeast land, where the
ice, though exceedingly rough in places
was yet practicable as a road
-Four days later we received word by
crushed by the Ice. Fortunately most
of the stores were saved. Notwith.
ste nding the loss Of the ship, which cut
off our line of retreat, We decided tc
go on.
After exploring most of the coast
of the northeast land, we found the Ice
thrown up in hopeless confusion in ev
cry direction. We made an effort with
one boat and a picked crew of eight mer
to advance to the north, but so rough
was the ice that after four days Of In
describabe effort, we found that W,
had advanced less than four miles. Thu
, same conditions of Ice existed as far a.
: the eye could see.
Further progress being impossible
we made out way back through man
dangers and difficulties, to Valdez
: Island, often wadlng in water up to on
waists. One member of the party, Mr.
Alme, the meteorological, broke one o
his legs, and we had to drag him owe
the ice and slush In the boat
/ NO change occurring in the extremel
unfavorable nature OF the season, whic
might give us an opportunity to sti
work further north, we set out Aug
( to fight our way through drifting ice t
1 the mainland Of Spitzbergen. AIN thi
we were successful. After a hard strug
gle of four days we reached 10y
1 Island, and there found a Norwegia
$ hunting sloop, the Berentine which w
= hired to carry us back to our head
= quarters at Danes Island. After tina
e we went to Norway. where we arrive
/ Aug. IS"
= Prof Wellman looks well and heart,
s and Is already making plans and PREF
: arations for another expedition nel
] year.