The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1896-02-27
FROM THE FROZEN SEAS
Claim that DR.. hansen Has Discovered
the North Pole.
The DOCTORS THEORY EXPLAINED
He Planned 40 Get Caught I'm the
North-bound Zee Pack and Car.
ried with the Current Across the
Apex OF the Globe.

The report that DR.. Nansen, the Nor.
wegian explorer, who sailed on the Fran,
June oath, 1898, for the Attic regions,
has reached the North pole, where he
found an open sea and land, is exciting
much comment throughout the world.
The probability OF the truth of the report Of
Nansen's success can be better estimated
after review of the programme he had
mapped out. He hoped to reach the pole
neither by ship and water nor in sledees
over the ice, but by ship through the
ice. From observations OF his own, and
other explorations, of an ice-paoa NOV
ing north from the coast of Siberia and
south on the east coast of Greenland, he
deduced the hypothesis Of constant
current or movement of ice across thu
apex OF the globe and over the pol,
| itself.
His simple plan was to take his shiy
as far north as he could near the poin
where the Jeanette was caught anc
crushed in this northward moving pacl
and trust her to it. He believed that sh,
would be carried slowly north to the pole
and then south past Greenland to th,
North Atlantic. She would be frozen il
the ice, OF course, but would move Will
it. II ship and men survived the voy
age, he would have gone to the pole from
the Eastern hemisphere and returned
from it to the Western, not by power o
sail or steam or dog sledge or human
strength, but by the slow and constan
movement OF the Arctic ice itself. III,
would make the element which had de
Tended the pole from all his predecessor,
his means OF transport to it.
The part to be played by ship and crew
after reaching the solid pack OF moving
ice north OF Siberia was purely passive
They had merely to continue to exist
to avoid destruction by ice or storm, by
cold or starvation. To this end the Fran
was built strong enough to avoid any
possible crushing force; that she might
be caught in the pack, frozen in and car.
rled along until released by breaking-up
OF the ice on the other side OF the globe,
without any injury to herself or her crew.
She was provisioned for years, in case
the voyage should be 30 prolonged, and
all possible protection provided against
cold. OF course, dogs and sledges were
provided. in case it was necessary to
leave the ship.
Had this plan been carried out, oil
course, there would have been NO news
from Nansen from the time he left the
north coast OF Siberia until he reap.
peared, after crossing the pole, in the
neighborhood OF Greenland, either on
the west coast, in Baffin's bay, or on the
east coast, in the North Atlantic, between
Greenland and Spitzbergen. Th=so would
be no way for news Of his adventures to
travel back, over his own northern track,
to the north coast OF Siberia. He could
not send news of his discoveries. He
would have to bring it himself.
But the news published that Nansen
had reached the pole, came from Hkutsk
Siberia, near the headwaters of the Lens
river, and was said to have come up that
river or overland from the person on the
New Siberian islands, opposite its mouth,
who supplied hansen with iugs and
sledges. If this is true, it means. that
Nansen, after making his way from these
islands to the pole, about 1000 miles, had
returned or sent some one back tho whole
distance with the news. This journey
would be made against the movement
of the ice-pack which was to carry the
Fran northward, and would seem much
more difficult and dangerous than to con-
tinue the journey to Greenland.
This is improbable enough, but all
things are possible in Arctic exploration.
The Fran may have been cast away,
broken up or fixed In stationary ice near
enough to the pole 20 permit reaching II
by sledges, or the'ice movement may
have been different from what was ex-
pected, so that it was necessary to aban-
don her. In this case, after accomplish
ing the main object Of the expedition, ii
may have seemed most wise I. lake the
| familiar back track, instead Of going on
through unknown regions. Or the ex-
petition may have been detained 30 long
in the far north that it was thought
worth while to send couriers back with
the great news. In either event, II the
news is true, it will not be long before it
comes in some credible official form, in
fact il is partially confirmed by tele-
gram sent on the 10Th inst. by the British
consul at Archangel, who said that DR..
hansen was safe and homeward bound
from the North pole.
Bread was to be the principal nourish-
ment of hansen and his people. The
bread is kind OF biscuit, large, round,
white and very compact. The ration
provided for each man was four biscuits
day. Silk was used as the most suit
able material for tents, as it shuts out
the cold better than any other material |;
and the suits worn by the men could not
be penetrated by water. The cabin OF
Nansen's ship, the Fran (meaning for