The herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1893-1900, 1897-07-23
Bring Brief Billets From
the Pole
MUCH DOUBT IS EXPRESSED
AS TO THE GENUINENESS OF THE
MESSAGES
The Birds Do Not Bear the Marks
Agreed Upon Before the Expe-
dition Started
Associated Press Special Wire.

Associated Press Special Wire.
LONDON, July ga special dispatch
from Copenhagen says a carrier pigeon
has been caught in the vicinity Of from
soc, near the north point of Norway, with
the following message stamped upon its
wings: North Pole passed fifteenth"
EKHOLA DOUBTS
STOCKHOLM, July 22.-Dr. Ekhola,
associated with Andree in the projected
balloon expedition last year, does not
believe that the carrier pigeon caught
Tuesday in the neighborhood of Soevde,
in Rigylke, with silver ring on one foot
and the message, North Pole, 142 W., AZ.
62, on its wings, is one of Andree's pig
cons. He says Andree's pigeons do not
wear silver rings on their legs and have
"Andree" stamped on their wings. More
over. he is confident Andree would not
send such an obscure message.
so DOES MOORE
WASHINGTON, July 22-Prof Willis
S. Moore, chief of the weather bureau,
was very much interested in the report
cabled from Christiania, Norway, that
a carrier pigeon arrived yesterday
bearing this significant message stamp
ed on it's wings: North Pole 142 w.,
1852"
Prof. Moore, although he believes
sufficient time has elapsed for the receipt
of such a message, is inclined to look
upon the report as canard. If the bird
had been freed by Andree he thinks the
ring on it's foot would have been marked
WI n h ba
have been signed. He also points out
the fact that the message was not dated.
After careful consideration of the at
mospheric conditions, he predicted that
if Andree reached the pole the air cur
rents would carry him out on almost the
longitude indicated and land him event
ually near Point Barrow, on the north
coast of Alaska.
With regard to Andree's means Of To-
eating the POLE Prof. Bigelow, the mag
netic expert of the weather bureau, says
he would unquestionably use the navi-
gators seXtant. The sun is always above
the horizon at this time of year and
there would be no difficulty in getting
observations.
Commodore Melville is not disposed
entirely to discredit the news from An
dree, Notwithstanding the absence of
data as to the sender of the message on
the pigeons wing and the date of the
discovery. This omission, he said, might
be accounted for by the haste of the
sender, and as it was not known that
any other party in the Arctic regions
was equipped with carrier pigeons, de-
gree of probability was lent to the report
no n
DOUBT REMOVED
STOCKHOLM, July 22.-The Alton
blat, which has close relations with Herr
Andree, says that Andree could not have
dispatched the pigeons recently caught
in the neighborhood of Soevde, and near
Tromsoe island, because it was arranged
that his pigeons should be marked with
the words: "Andree expedition, A. D.
1897"
GREELEY'S VIEWS
WASHINGTON, July 22.-In reply to a
Geographic request, A. w. Greeley, the
Arctic explorer, has sent the Associated
Press from Linden, Va. the following
signed statement regarding the Andree
expedition: sit is possible that Prof
Andree may have reached the north pole
or it's vicinity. Telegraphic reports, SO
far as have seen, state that he started
with south wind of % miles an hour.
The chances of such a wind blowing
600 miles straight to the north pole is,
however, very small, as it would be an
extraordinary meteorological phenom-
enon. My opinion of Andree's projected
expedition and his probable return was
expressed at the sixth international ge-
ographical congress in July, 1895, in Lon :
don, where 1 debated the question pub
licly with Prof. Andree and also dis.
cussed the chances with him privately,
and he admitted the extreme hazardous
ness of the project, which strongly out
lined 1 pointed out that even should he
reach the pole, he could hardly expect
10 find his south wind continuing across
the pole for thousand miles, as north
wind.
HE expressed his determination to go
and his confidence of returning safely.
while believe that Andree will never
return, yet experience teaches us tha:
miraculous things occur daily.
(Signed) "a w GREET ,FY -