New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-06-26
RETURNING FROM THE POLE
ERRONEOUS IDEAS ABOUT THE DIFF
Cr1.TIEs ENCOUNTERED.
WITH A GOOD COMPASS AND CHRoFoMETER TIE
ARCTIC EXPLORER CAN FIND hiS
WAY EASILY.
WAY EASILY

WAY EASILY.
within the last few weeks magazine ih"A
ing some pretension to scientific authority nas
printed an article In which II is suss's'eu '"'
II An Arctic explorer were ever suCces"'u' :"
reaching the North Pole he could not hho Ills
vav horne again. 1t was asserted with perfect
truthfulness that when a man Is NJ the io''
all directions are south There is no north nc
east and no west there But the article relerreu u
also contains two highly misleading statements
and although almost any well-'hornleu seos
rainier would detect these errors Instantly the
average reader might easily overlook them. III
view Of the wide currency given to them by the
daily press II is desirable to point them OUT DE-
fore they deceive any larger fraction of the in
telligent public.
The two radically wrong assumptions OF the
magazine article just mentioned are tha' th'
COMPASS is of no value to the navigator after he
reaches the Pole. and that there are no as'ro-
nomical observations by which man can ie''i
mine his route from that locality
In the first place. one should carefully dis
crlminate between the geographical pole anc
the magnetic pole" The former is the eXuem-
ity OF the earths axis. and this Us the goal "hlct
SO many explorers have strven to reach. thus
OF longitude and here shrink down to nothing
the circles of latitude The North Pole is In
north latitude 30. and 1t has no longitude what
ever The spot toward which the compass
points approximately is more than Thousand
miles AWAY from the North Pole Although II
appears to shift very slowly with the lapse OF
wears II Is now situated In about north latitude
10 degrees and west longitude 94:3O. II is W
in
from Hudson's Ray.
Accordingly, when the navigator. aiming FOR
the west coast Of Greenland, gets up to Cape
Farewell In latitude 20. he perceives that MS
compass does not poin: toward the North star.
but off in a northwesterly direction Having
reached Disco Island. he has the magnetic pole
due west Of him. and the needle has westerly
instead of a northerly, aim. Proceeding still
further w the coast. ne discovers land Is fully
prepared to discover that the instrument by
which he steers his ship swings further away
from true north, and when he finally gets to
the geographical pole II has completely re-
versed its Indications 1t points straight south
ward All OF these variations have been tabu-
lated for him H. scientific men. and he makes
a proper allowance for them with each degree
Of latitude knowing just how much fast or
BLOW MS Wd'Cn u, "a man AN diN ayr ''i 'i'
precise time Of day without difficulty. In like
manner the mariner. with the tables and charts
showing the magnetic variation for the diff
Arent parts Of the world which he visits, can
sell what is true north. be the night never So
lark and cloudy
II the geographical and magnetic poles were
IDENTICAL. a nan might be bothered When one
stands directly over the magnetic pole the
needle is paralyzed. II loses its directive ten
dency and stays where II is put 1t shows no
preference for north rather than south, east
Or west But this is not the at the geo
graphical poll. The compass. in the hands Of
& person tit 10 conduct an Arctic expedition, is
Just as useful a, that place as anyWhcr" else
or the globe. !; Is fully az acrl ceahle III find
Ing ones va back as in steering ones way
thither
Now how docs ;he explorer begin when ne
DO degree, norm latitude He has some pref
,Jencc j; f. To- ,e assumed. for a paitl' ular
berdan Of longitude. Let II be supposed that
the explorer g.. pcary and that ne wants t.
Etrikc the :. rtI'.I coast IS Greenland In long
tudc - 20 west Of Greenwich His compass
points Win decision toward - Spot situated. Is
be well kno,ye IN longitude ~ 80 west Of Green
Wich Consequently. If h adopts Il course which
Keeps thu needle just 81 degrees q arc of to