The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1896-08-20
MEETING OF EXPLORERS NAN
sen AND JACKSON a RE
MARKABLE INCIDENT.
II WIS LUCKY FOR THE NORWEGIAN
Dr. Nansen Was Lost, Owing to Inaccu-
racies of His Map-Commodore
Melville Says Nansen's Polar
Drift Theory Is Exploded.

l
captain of the Windward, the British
steamer, which has just returned from
Franz Josefand after taking supplies to
the British north pole expeditions, com
manded by Jackson and known ms the
Jackson armsworth expedition, filed II
| tclegraphic message here yesterday. de-
scribing the accidental meeting between
Jackson and DR.. Nansen and forming
one of the most remarkable incidents in
the history of Arctic exploration, for
it appears that the Norwegian explorer
had been living in hut quite close to
one of the English explorers stations for
Il long time previous to the meeting of
the two men, yet neither of them was
aware of the others presence in that
vicinity.
In this message jackson describes his
accidental meeting with DR.. Nansen
while the latter was travcrsing an ice
pack, and it appears that it was lucky
meeting for the Norwegian explorer, as
the latter was misled, owing to the in
accuracies in the map drawn by Payers,
the discoverer of Franz Josefland, and
also because of DR.. Nansen's two
thermometers and his watch having
stopped, he was quite unable to estab-
list his position and was consequently
trying to march westward to Spitzbergen
over the ice pack, which was not only
dangerous but probably impossible.
jackson. after meeting Nansen, con-
Quoted the latter to Elmwood, the head
quarters of the British expedition.
| where the doctor awaited the arrival of
the Wimdward. which left the Thames
ON June 10 and Eardoe on June % to
| take supplies to the Jackson expedition
and not to bring the party back, as cur
| rently reported.
jackson, in the dispatch filed by the
captain of the Windward, said:
.'On June II | met DR.. Nansen three
miles out on foe, southeast of Cape
Flora and under most extraordinary
circumstance. He wintered in a rough
| hut within but mile or two of our
northern limit i'll 1880, and this spring
we mwittingly came within Il few
| miles of his winter quarters.
DIR. Nansen left the Fran with one
companion, Lieutenant Siguard Hansen.
Il lieutenant in the Norwegian navy and
| director of the astronomical, meteor
| logical and magnetic observations, and
reached latitude SCH travelling north
east from where he left the Fran, which
was in latitude ST. longitude east.
DIR. Nansen expressed the greatest
surprise and the liviest satisfaction at
meeting with us. You understand how
greatly the meeting affected me and my
pleasure at the extraordinary chance
which had been thrown in my way to
render him service and restore him to
his friends"
Jackson then describes his own OK
pcrience i'll exploring the western parts
of Franz Josefand. telling how he has
drawn extensive, accurate maps and has
discovered new regions. adding:
when the Windward left in 1895 we
went on n months expedition to the
northwest in little boat, the Mary
llarmsworth, and discovered Il large
tract of land to the westward of
hitherto unknown limits and magnfi-
cent headland composed of ice from its
summit to its foot and having at its base
huge Unacceptable rampant of ice. We
named it Harmsworth cape and only APP
preached the base on the headland with
the greatest difficulty, owing to surging
masses of heavy ice and furious gales,
during which our boat was upon several
occasions nearly smashed to atoms.
I'VE landed on the coasts as often as
possible and assembled the huge peaks
and made numerous geological and
DOlanlcal cOllectlOnS.
Far up Cambridge bay we discovered
another lofty ice headland and named
it Cape FritZjof Nansen.
There our boat was nearly lost.
owing to her sea anchor having been
carried away. and IA huge block of ice
winch was surging around stove in one
of her planks. We managed to bail her
out however, and then. rigging another
anchor with oars, we had altogether
very exciting voyage.
This spring has been phenomenally
mid Although we marched north a
great distance, using sixteen dogs and
a pony, we met, after fortnight, open
water, reaching the base of huge
glacier. east to the precipitous end of
another huge glacier west Advance by
sledges was cut off. We struck south
east down Markham sound and added
greatly to our discovery of 1895, but
were again stopped by open water reach
ing nearly across the sound, so we
turned westward and succeeded in ex-
plorlng the entire western shores"
During April, terrible snow storms.
coupled with rises in the temperature.
broke up the ice and prevented march
ing, but we took a number of valuable
1t is believed that the Fran nav turn
up here or at Bergen shortly, as she
STOOD the Ice very well, has plenty of pro- |
visions on board. and there was no sick |
ness among her crew when Nansen left |
her on March IA, 1885,
Professor Mohn says that the scientific |
results of DR.. Nansen's observations are |
and that several islands have |
been discovered.
DIR. Nansen, describing his life during |
the winter of 1886, said
when the bear flesh had been ex-
hausted, we were obliged to kill the weak
est dog to feed the others and continue
thus until the whole pack had been
Myself and my companion started in
the direction of Spitzbergen on May 10.
After that we occupied six weeks on
snow shoes dragging sedges and kayaks
the Arctic canoe) loaded ON sedges after
rs. We went partly overland and partly
over sea ice.
1--WE reached Jackson's winter quarters
where we found I'll in good health. We
there about six weeks until the
steamer Windward arrived.
Il left the Fran in good condition and
lrifting. locked in the ice. The Wind
ward will take to England four English
men who left the expedition, whose names
ire Child, Burgess, Fisher and Bloom
luest.
"Mr. Jackson and his companions are
n excellent health and spirits and full
# hope as to the results of their expe-