The morning news., 1897-08-29
PLAN TO REACH THE PoLE.
Would DcmOIish Distractions. With
"a Modern Warship.
From the New York Times.

From the New York Times.
Baltimore-T A. Lewis of this city has
plan for reaching the north pole. He
| spent several years on a whaling vessel
and was shpwrecked In Cumberland in
| let, passing the entire winter on its shores.
You are doubtless aware" ne said,
! that all the expeditions which have gone
| northward were fitted out in slow ships
! The idea seems to have been to reach a
point as far north as practicable in some
| old wooden tub, cast anchor, and wait to
| be frozen to death. Whatever is done in
! the frigid zone in summer by way of sail
| ing must be done quickly. What Is needed,
! therefore, is a large ship run by powerful
| engines, provided with a ram and torpe-
! does, with which TO plow its way through
| Davis Strait pass Spitzbergen, or due
| north from Beling Strait into the open
polar sea. one of our cruisers, for exam
| pie, wel,-stocSed with facilities FOR fight
! ing against the ice-pack, with 200 men on
| board, plenty of coal, and a magazine of
| dynamite. would succeed in the undertake
! ing. and sailing to the north pole will
never be accomplished by other means"
About June Is each year" Mr. Lewis
! continued, Davis strait hes ms TO get clear
of ice. At that time also the whales come
! down from the north and enter Hudson
! bay. There is much floating fee, of course,
and probably several packs might be en-
! countered on the pa sage, but it is certain
| that in ordinary years there is a compar-
| ativeiy free path for ships from the open
! ing of DAVIS strait 10 the north pole be-
| tween July Is and Aug. 80 As for bergs and
! any large Ice foes which might be met
! with, there need be no fear. During the
! entire twenty-four hours it would be light
/ enough to read newspaper on the deck
! Of the cruiser. The apr pOach of large
/ masses of ice could be seen the ship
! pei n NO aply
! could be dealt with by very simple means.
! TorpedOes placed under II would blow it to
/ atoms, and the ships ram would make
/ short work of any ordinary areas which
/ might be encountered
The route through Davis strait Baf-
fms bay and Smith sound, past GrnneE
/ land or through Jones sound TO the west
! ward, is comparatively free from ice by
Julyv l OF each year. Prof. Hellprin,
Z leader Of heoPeary relief expedition, land
ed on the shores Of McCormic bay on July
a, and his ship proceeded two days north
ward before It struck anything like solid
/ ice. From the upper end of Bafflns bay
/ through Kennedy channel into Lincoln
/ sea, is about COO miles. The way is mar
row and probably much floating ice would
/ be found, but the ram and torpedoes would
/ be 1t hand 10 demolish it, and the warship
cou.d sail through into the open sea be-
yond in ten days, when it would find
pole.
But while the Passage north from the
b Atlantic ocean is possible, that from the
! Pacific Is much easier and more direct. 1t
/ IS well known that the japan current
! flows steadily through Bering Strait into
/ the Arctic sea, and whalers viii tell you
! that they have chased 'bowheads all over
3 the waters above Point Barrow well up to
. 10 degrees north without seeing a cake of
ice big enough for a shaker lemonade
The Japan current is warm, and II is
Joined on the Siberian coast BY the fresh
waters of he great rivers which flow into
the northern ocean. This creates strong
flow of the ocean currents across the arctic
3 circle toward Greenland 1t carries the ice
along, and the movement beneath Is aided
above by the prevailing winds Conse-
| quently the way TO the pole is much less
/ impeded on the western than on the cas-
! tern side
/ You know, perhaps, that any number
| of whalers have been lost by drifting into
/ the current above Point Barrow In Sep
( tember and never getting out. Suppose
] they should go up there about the 1st Of
/ July instead. They would have time to
/ sail to the pole and back again before get
| ting nipped by the return Of cold weather
| In the fall.
give me a good coal supply on WrauRle
| Island and the government cruiser and
| will agree 10 start on June % from that
point, and astonsh the native by dlscoV-
ering the pole. | wish TO say however,
that the polar sea may not always be
| open. That region, like the lower lati-
| tudes, has It's cold and warm summers.
! About two years out OF five the way prob
| ably would be barred BY impossible ice in
| what the explorers call the paleocrystic
| sea. But from the LOOKOUT on the cruiser
/ ~ would be possible 10 size up the extent
/ of Ice fields about, and a little reconno.s-
| sance In front would soon determine The
/ possibility OF breaking through Should II
/ be found that the way was blocked I
| would simply back out and wait a year
! for more open sea. And. let me tell
! you" said the Old scafarer with great
earnestness, ~ this plan should be pur-
sued year after year at small expense,
and with no risk TO the ship or the lives
/ OF its crew, a curious world would not
| have 10 wait more than five years TO know
| all about the circumpOlar regions.
"To my mind only one difculty lies In
the way Of sailing to the pole. II the the
| ory regarding an open polar sea Is ac-
\ cepted, the cruiser would enter II Ia lau-
/ tude 81 10 50. but when once the ship had
/ sailed across these untfaversed waters
/ and reached the pole % would be necos-
sary 70 turn around and imodiatcly rc-
/ turn. TO remain would moan 30 Rave
tho vessel left fof Fix months in "a closed
sea. Besides, IL o. not known what fate
! would bcfal tho compass az soon az the
| ship should pass under the polar star.
] The mariner might De- lott without hia
/ reckoning and not know which direction
/ 80 takc. There would ha no stars % nolnt
/ out his track. no lcrborvs. perhaps. a.
I tell from whence be- had come. ana b.
/ might b. len on "a fIacflesf waste with
/ out o chart or cOmpafn-a houolofr fate
/ for the sailor. But that suah scheme
.a practicable ia appnr nt 90 rvorg 0ld
/ yNalrr ~ ~ Wn0ta observations have
/ been Ht ail extended iu fhe northern ocean
Wiz not much doubt the nr8ba llilty on
doing Hhgf I have dencrlbod. You ~.
I tna conditions w0li 1e entirely chanrod
/ we're the crHiafr DrT0It for lnfiBnrf
cent irfo ne Arctic c.rrla ln 1.arr II ffa
ol1 Nhnlo n1aiH ahioh lnff gone thofs
| hitherto
"Nhai af' fle proof. thaf There ls an
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