The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-01-31


its entire course.
IN THE HEART OF ASIA.
The heart of Asia. in the remarkable
explorations of Mr.. st. George Littledale
his traverse of the kuenlun range and
of the great eastern plateau of Thibet, the
so-caIled Cnang-adds chapter TO the
travellers record which will stand side
by side with those of Nounghusband,,
Bonvalot, PrZevalski, Pundit krishna and
Rockhill. 1t is the beginning toward ni!-
inc in the great cartegraphlcal blank
which begins with the norJnern hlmalaSa
chain ana ends with the Altai, and with
which are associated the headWaterS OF
some OF the mighty rivers of the globe
Irramadi. Yang-TZe and Mekong. rms
Tibetan plateau, has been properly
pointed out by General Walker, chief OF
the trigonometricai survey OF India, is
the largest protuberance OF the earth
surface, and its photographic features
are among the most unique ana lmpoS-
ing that this globe presents. Toward its
exploration viii doubtless be directed
much of the energy of travel during the
next quarter of a century.
THE SUCCESSFUL CROSSING OF
NEW GUINEA.
In a brief dispatch addressed to the
governor OF Queensland, Australia, Sir
William MacGregor, the administrator
of British New Guinea, announces that
? without loss of life or limb, he mas
successfully made the first crossing or
New Guinea. Through this venture,
therefore, another one of the preSum-
ably inaccessible regions of the earth's
surface mas fallen submissive before
mans determination and daring. Varl-
Gus attempts to penetrate into the IN
terror of New Guinea have from time 10
time been made, but owing to the hostile
character of the native tribes, the dense
vegetable growth, and the comparative
inSignihcance of the water courses tend
ing to make avenues of travel, these Ell
forts have met with but little success,
while in some instances the extermlna-
ton of the personnel of the expedition
has been the only achievement of we'll
directed purpose. The region, except on
its borderland, has thus long remained
terra incOgnita; indeed, many OF its most
salient features were hardly known be-
fore the earlier explorations of Mac
Gregor in 1889.
Hence it was that few geographers
accepted without question, the state
ment of a Major Lawson that the high
est known mountain of the globe, a con-
structed" Mt Hercules, with an eleva-
ton of 1900 feet (or seven miles,, was 10
be found there, and some even went so
far as to credit the statement thdt TINS
(aSSumed) mountain has actually been
| assembled by its would-be discoverer Mr.
MacGre&OrS route conducted him from
the mouth of the Mambare (the SPREE to
the mouth of the Nenapa. and across
what is commonly assumed by Seograpn-
ers to be the highest line of heights OF
the entire island These are the mount
" "
Der of SUBMITS of which none seem to be
less than from 10000 to $4,000 feet in ele-
Vation Mt. Victoria, so far as is known,
the eliminating point of the region, has
an altitude slightly exceeding 1000 feet,
and was now assembled for the second
time. The previous attempts to ascend
it, which were made by Armit. Chalmers,
GOldie, Morrison, Hartman, Hunter, Cuth-
be~tson and II. o. Forbes only resulted
in signal failure. 1t is expected that this
expedition will have a direct and bene-
fetal effect upon the opening up of the
country, and in directing emigration
there. 1t proves the possibility of max
in a practical trade route across the
British territory-an advantage that can
hardly be overestimated-
PROPOSED EXPLORATIONS THIS
YEAR.
OF the explorations that are at this mo-
ment being planned. the first place is
! taken by those which look to the Antarc-
tic regions as the fields for the most
promising research. 1t is almost certain
that at least two expeditions will be in
service during the present year-those of
Lieutenant Gerlache Sailing under the
| Belgian fiag) and of Borchgrevink; and it
is by no means unlikely that the Ameri-
can flag may be sent at much the same
! time to compete in friendly rivalry for
the stakes that the far south offers.
! What will or may be accomplished by
! these expeditions can hardly be pre-
missed. The renewed activity in eXplora-
tory work makes it almost certain that
! few parts of the unknown globe will es-
cape the attention of the traveller of the
immediate future. and to him we now
| look for the effacement of those large
blanks which still disfigure the map of
| the world
The healthy and exhilarating exercise
of mountaineering still holds a prominent
position in the work of exploration and
| it has lost little of its earlier zeal in a
search for new worlds to conquer.
/ The rpma rkahle success which has At
tended Mr.. Fitzgerald's crossing of the
New Zealand Alps has tempted this dar-
what is most generally assumed although
perhaps wrOngfully) to be the loftiest
mountain summit of the new world. Mt.
Aconcagua, formerly in Chile, but now
! in Argentina, with an altitude as deter
mined in the early 'thirtieS by Admiral
Fitzroy of the British navy. to be 2S.91O
feet. Later measurements by the Spanish
engineer. Pissis, have seemingly reduced
this elevation to % 422 feet, but whether
| one way or the other the extinct volcano
still presents a sufficiently bold front to
tax the capabilities and endurance or the
hardest of mountaineers.
The German traveller Gussfeldt attempt
ed it in 1888. but gave up the effort after
reaching 21.0S9 feet-an elevation exceed
| ing the highest SHOWS of Chimborazo.
What the chances are for the successful
accomplishment of this work cannot be
foretold but it is certain that the effort
will involve a struggle of which those
who have never attempted high noun
taineering can hardly form conception.
! If assembled to the summit. and the
mountain proves to have the elevation
which was conceded to it by FitZroy. then
a record in mountaineering will have
been established, for there are but few
today who do not doubt the accuracy of
the measurement of the Kabru. in the
Himalayas. given by Graham in his ia
NOUS ascent of 1856 as 23.700 feet Mr..
| Conway's capture of the Pioneer peak. in
the Karakoram Himalayas. with an alti-
tude of at least q. 800 feet. is seemingly
the highest point that has thus far been
trod by man on the surface of the earth.
Aconcagua may add to this record sun
another 1.400 feet, and it is certain that
the mountain from its volcanic form and
| corresponding decreased snow covering.
will present less difficulties in its ascent
than would many of the minor peaks OF
! the Himalayas.
II is. however. by no means certain that
ali America The Nevada de Sorata or
! JlIampu. rising from the plateau region
! of Titicaca. has often been regarded as
! fine true monarch of the Andes. ana on
! many of the more recent aliases II ap-
nears with the very respectable elevation
! of "a o5 NOO feet and its associate. I'LL
mani NAV not be lacking much OF 24,OVy
! feet 1t is a rather remarkable fact. and
! one that adds little to the true spirit OF
scientific inquiry. that with luIly
/ eouipped astronomical and meteorological.
| observatory that of MistD near at hand
and furnished with the talent of the fore
/ most American university, no serious Ell
/ fort should vet have been made to ascen-
{ tain the true heights of these MOUNTAINS
and thereby determine one or the more
important points in American geosrSaptL n -
| The success or failure of this latest
mountaineering exploit will omen up the
question as to what are the ultimate pos
sibilities of this kind of work Decade