Weekly independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 1887-1914, 1900-02-23
ARCTIC WORK IN 1898
Progress of the Expeditions to Reach
the North Pole.
Favorable Conditions of Last Year 10 Z
JourneyinE Through the Ice
Noted Explorer Now in
the Far North.

Ice cOnultlonS Ill the arctic waters
r3rth OF Europe have very rarely been
so favorable for navigation as they
were last summer. II fortunately EaJ.-
pened that number of exploring rar-
ties were i'll that region, and the rrsult
is record of unusual achievements.
The prevailing west drift usually pacMs
the ice solidly against the cast coast. of
SpitEbergcn, and il was only, about %
years ago that the world learned at last
something of the nature and CCE.our
OF that coast. For three cGut;,rics
whalers and sealeTs had frc1u. nttG
those waters. but they rarely gS; with
IN sight Of east Spitzbergen. 1t was net
until Nordcnskiold led the Swedish ,S-
petition Of 1SGS to those arctic Islands
that we!l-dcfined coast line tcck liz,
place on the maps of the Indefinite
dotted line which merely demonstrated
that little or nothing was known about
east Spizbcrgcn.
This year the sea TO the east ard
north was clear OF any ice formidable
enough TO prove a barrier. The scflih
ard west shores of the M chipclago a.c
always ice free in summer. E,i,
was an unoqualed opportunity. ard 70
earlier explorers have ever made. uch Il
record in SpitZbcrgen waters as that
OF the Swedish expedition last summer
commanded by Prof. y. G. NatLorst.
:irst. his steamer, the Antarctic.
stopped for Is days at Bear island
where n minute survey Of this wei.
known resort Of arctic whalers WI.
made. Then the expedition made it's
way to the King Charles islands. off
northeast Spitzbcrgen. the reports of
which were thought tn be a whalcr's
yarn tall the journeys of johnson and
Nilsen III 1872 placed them on the maps.
y large part Of their coasts are still
shown in dotted lines, but the next
maps Will represent them as they really
are, for Prof. Nathorst has made sur
vey of the three islands and has mapped
them on the large scale of is miles TO
the inch.
Then the Antarctic steamed al out II
hundred miles further north to ! hitp
island. which will no longer be mi. ked
existence doubtful" for Nathorst
found il to he "ery substantial bit of
arctic land, and determined It's geo
logical features. The Antarctic finally
carried out two undertakings never be-
fore accomplished, and they will be re-
garded as most remarkable in view of
the usual ice conditions. She first cir
cumnavignted Northeast -.and, one OF
the largest islands of the Spi.zbergcn
group. passing uniInpeded through
llinlopen strait, which is usually
choked with ice; and then she sailed
completely around the entire Spitzber-
gen group, feat that may not be per-
formed again for many years.
The German geological expedition on
the steamer Eelgoland also spent some
time on the King Charles islands and
elrcumnavgated Northeast Land; and
the German warship Olga skirtcd long
stretches of coasts and pushed into
mnny bay while investigating the
fisheries prospects in Spitzbcrgcn wa-
ters.
Our countryman, Mr. W. Wcllman.
had the advantage OF the same favor
able conditions in his journey 70 Franz
Josef Land. His ship, the Fridtjof,
landed him on the far northern archi-
pellgo on July Il with month of sum
mcr still before him. Mr.. Jackson's
winter home, 1Inrmsworth House. at
Cape Flora. was taken down. packed on
the steamer and conveyed further
northeast to Cape Tegcthor, where II
was rccrccted. When the Fridtjof
started home IL was Wcllman's purpose
To leave three men at this camp in
charge of II large part OF his supplies,
while he with eight men pushed on
about 100 miles further north to Cape
Fligcly. some I5O nautical miles from
the north pole. Here he proposed TO
spend the winter. and MS soon ms the sun
appears next spring TO start on his jour
ncy TO the pole, which he hopes TO reach
in so days.
III all goes we'll there may according
ly be race for that elusive goal this
spring between Pcary and Wcllmlu.
Concerning the fortunes OF Mr.. Pcary's
enterprise. IL is known only that lie was
at the entrance 10 Smith sound on Nu.
gust IL last, that he had transferred his
stores from tho auxiliary stt.mrr i'opc
TO his exploring vessel Windward. that
hc Ind on board co dogs and all the Es-
kimos he needed. and was about to
start for rcary channel. on the north
coast of Greenland, expecting 20 vim
ter i'm that nciphborhond. II good luck
attended him his winter camp is about
n hundred miles nearer the pole than
the spot where WCllman hoped TO win
ter Capt. Svcrdrrp. bound for the re-
gion Of rCary's proposed camp on the
Fran, was at UpCtnivik on August 4.
nbnut TOO miICk south Of pcory!e roSi-