Red Lodge picket. [volume] (Red Lodge, Mont.) 1889-1907, 1894-03-17
OFF FOR THE POLE
The Walter WeIlman Party Starts
For Spitzbergen on a Unique
Arctic Enterprise.
Fascinating Mystery Of the Frozen
, North Likely to Soon Be
Solved.
Mistakes OF Former Explorers tC Be
Ayoided-Sone Of the Novel
Features.

T CULTURES.
New YORK. March 14.-Mr. Walter
Wellman, the we'll known journalist
sailed on the steamer Britannia en- route
for Spitz? ergen, from which point his
expedition Will make a summer d ash fo1
the north pole. Mr.. Well.nsn was &C.
companied by three other Ameri ans ~
Professor Owen 3. French, late of the
and an experienced anl capable scien-
tist; I>r. Thomas 3. dohun. a successful
Washington physician, and Charles G.
Dodge, the artist and photographer OF
the expedition. The enterprise is under
the ieaGershipsf Mr.. Wei.man, and the
three men named are his lieutent nts.
Ten hardy young Norvegians, ainbi-
+ious AMI experience :! il Arctic explora-
ton. will join the party i'll Norway,
and tile expedition will sail from from
soc. Norway, for the Islands of S,'itz-
bergen about the lst of May. At Dane's
island, which is very near the o0th
parallel-that point of latitude SO far
north that many explorers have never
reached and few have ev.r pissed it
headquarters will be established, and
then the party will ste IN to the edge of
the great ice pack about degree
farther north. A..or a landing is
effected the steamer will return to
Danes island, and about the 10Th or
18th Of HAY the dash for the pole will
leyin.
That marvellous new metal, alunli-
NUN, has b-en u:ii.Z i il ths construc-
ton Of sl.,lges, boats Aid other app,r
atus, and thus equippe,! with far lighter
puraphern.:ia til IL any previous ex-
plorer, Mr.. Wel!lnan expects to b. la
to pusil on north at the rate of from II
10 20 miles per day As he will have
only about 600 mile, 10 travel before
tnc pole is reached, he expects to either
reach that goal or point very near it
il. 50 days He will thea return to the
edge Of the pack in so days more, his
Gamer viii pick him ui,, AM he will
then re urn home.
Nj. WelI,nan has carefully studied
the great problem bee r. hini and ex-
ecis to profit i'y the knowiedzse gained
by previous explorers who have traversed
the pack and 10 avoid their mistakes.
His early start is for ti,- purpose 4 t get
1!a- f,,r north efore the pack begins its
G:i;t toward the south. Away ba k in
1927 Sir E.lwar.! Parry pushed on north
ward over tie pack al the rate Of from
IL to 20 miles yer day. but his heavy
equ.page cclnppllel him TO break his
loads into parts and pass from five to
seven times over the same road.
G,h=r explorers, handle .ppe,l with old
tim. S edges ard boats, have been com
leilel to progress i'll the same slow
manner. but Mr.. Weliman believes that
with his light aluminium outfit retr4cing
lis steps VIII b unnecessary. AMI that
every mile Travelled viii take him mile
fartlie; towar.! the pole. at the start
The drift OF the ice pacA VII not be
against him, and when he returns later
in tie season it will ;.ss.ss him in his
ho1neward journey.
Mr. Weiiman carries with him his
aluminium boats aid s!eIges-the first
ever l:!1jit in Ainerics-and tests have
demo sirated that they are by far the
llgilItst and at the ss.1iie time the Very
sfrn11ges: beats and s.eif,es Of their s;za
taai tie world Il IS ever seen. The en-
tire equipment Of the party of II VIII be
;-bout $500 pounds, AMI as 40 hardy
draft dogs will assist III carrying it, the
average weight per man and dogs will
b. about 100 pound.
O ne novel feature # fIr. Wel!rnan's
scheme Of exploration IS That it is str CT y
newsp per exi;e slticn, and ii Mr..
Weiim.trs :'i::ns are rriel out the
world viii be %pprised OF his progress
toward the pole. thing that has never
l;efore tetn lone in he Sc Of any pre-
vicus polar expiditiol. NJ mb"rs Of his
! arty will lie seat b elk from time to
time to the edge of the ice pack with
letters describing the progress of the
expedition and the discoveries made by
TIE explorers. At the dge Of the ice
Jack the dispttcI.es will lie taken on
oard Mr.. Wellman's steamer, which
will return to Norway, whence the
world will receive the news.
Whether Mr.. Wellrnan's dash for the
pole will lie successful or lot remains to
le seen, but if his novel plan is even
partly carried out he Will succeed in
reaching degree of latitude farther
north than that reached by any previous
explorer. With Wellman. Peary. Nam
sen and ossibly Jackson in quest of the
pole this year, it seems highly probable
tEat 1894 will mark the solution of the
frcz II North's fascinating mystery.