The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1901-02-08


peaks with STOW, others push their
sharp peaks of hard rocks through the
inland ice to the frosty skies. But en-
veloping this great continent there is
an overland sea Of ice.
Buried Deep Beneath Ice.
This great overland ice is piled upon
the Antarctic highlands by the yapor-
charged breezes which sweep the Cir
cumpolar waters The highest part OF
this mainland is probably at the south
pole, whence the surface descends by
an imperceptible grade to the seashore
where the overland sea ice breaks into
foes which float northward as ice
bergs. In addition to being weighted
down by the accumulated frost of
thousands of years the land is guard
ed by the hand of nature in another re-
close to the Antarctic circle. there is
an unyielding sea of ice which spreads
out from 400 to so miles, thus COM
pletely fencing off the land by an al
most impenetrable barrier of frozen
surface waters.
The man who plans to mount to the
south pole must first find passage
through the drifting pack ice and
then face the colossal problem of as
cendfng q cliff Of glacial ice hundreds
Of feet in height. After he has scaled
this he has to devise means of bringing
enormous death-dealing crevasses and
then he has to pull up heart sicken-
ing ascent to attitudes where the bitter
cold makes life almost uncomfortable.
There remains to be added to these
discouraging prospects the soul-de-
stroying elements OF a series of almost
perpetual tempests. But 1t is possible
for man to overcome all this II he can
hn Ylrn fo1 nd n1n $hn6 ThnYl cr0
the conditions are entirely different
from those which oppose the search
for the north pole, the question of sup
PLIES, which is the main factor of the
boreal march, is also the principal set
back in the austral search. The sup
ply ship can be pushed to the edge of
the land at q point within 800 miles OF
the pole. Since this journey is to be
made overland, straight course can
be laid. Thus the expensive detours
which are necessary in the Arctic will
be avoided If the land is at all
smooth, as it seems reasonable to ex-
rect, the distance to the pole and re-
turn should not be more thana 1880
geographical miles. This journey with
dogs and especially constructed sledges
should be made in five months An en-
couraging prospect here is the hope
that advance stations may be pushed
inland and cached, which is impractic-
e. -
South Pole Is Well Guarded.
The success or failure in transport
| ing food and supplies over this land ice
will determine the accessibility of the
southern axis. If the land is smooth,
like the interior of Greenland, then it
is within the power Of man with pres
| ent means to plant his foot on the aus
trail pivot. If, however, it is much
crevassed, irregular and mountainous,
i then there is small hope of success
| He who contemplates an attack upon
this heatless under surface Of the
globe will find many tempting allure
ments and many disheartening re-
| bluffs. His obstacles are those Of the
Arctic multiplied by ten.
Nature shields the mysteries of the
frozen south with much jealousy. She
tempts by permitting small advance
and a long look ahead, but when you
resove to force on into the white blank
the ice gates close. as If to say, You
4 may look but you must not enter"
The Magnetic Poles.
There are two other poles that are Of
equal interest and in many respects
more important, since their location en-
tiers more into the daily routine of life.
4 refer to the magnetic poles. There
4 are then four terrestrial poles-two
4 upon which the globe revolves through
space, the geographical poles, and the
two magnetic poles which point the
mariners compass. The two magnetic
y POLES are two points on the earth not
exactly opposite each other. Their To-
cation is more or less of a mystery
The northern spot to which the mag
netfc needle points Is at or near the
southern projection of Boothia island
about 1,400 miles south Of the geo.
graphical north pole, along about the
l h mo- nf ri
region was explored by Ross seventy
years ago, but the subsequent be-
havior of the needle has led to the Le-
lief that the pole has since moved. The
south magnetic pole Is somewhere
within the high mountains Of east,
4 about 1900 geographical miles north OF
the south geographical pole. along
longitude LAG east Of Greenwich.
The north magnetic pole is the mos
accessible Of the four poles. 1t is pos.
sible to push a supply ship to within
, n hundred miles of where the needle
: stands vertically, and from there, witt
small boats and sledges, the many OBJ.
. servations which are necessary coulC
be prosecuted. The work OF Sir Johr
Ross In this region was done at q lime
:. when the science Of terrestrial mag
Anetism was in its infancy. His in
4 struments were primitive and imper
:. feet, and his methods, for present pur
poses. entirely unreliable. To make {
|. magnetic survey of the regions abou
!. the north magnetic pole is far NOR,
4 important than q knowledge of thu
northern geographical pole. It offer'
, no obstacles comparable to the hun
dreds of miles OF moving Ice which vii
have to be crossed and recrossed ii
4 I the regions farther north. One hun
dred thousand dollars, in the prope
i i he r1dSl WO1Ild} Certafnly cOlnpleta fhi
most valuable work. II