Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-01-12
POLAR EXPLORATION
Difficulties to Be Overcome and Hard
ships Endured.
Id METHODS MUST Be FOLLOWED
The Problem is Still One of Food
and Transportation.
WHAT MAY YET BE DONE
Copyright, 1901, by F. A. CoOk.)

Copyright 1901, by F. A. Cook
Written for The Evening Star by Frederick A.
Owing to the failure of the efforts Of past
ages we are likely to conclude that the
north pole is not accessible; but no expedi-
ton has ever turned back because OF any
insurmountable barrier, or because of the
impossibility of marching farther The real
difficulty is not the cold or the impediments
of travelling over rough ice; it Is the unim-
aginable hardship Of carrying food, fuel and
bedding for journey that is certain to re-
quire five or six months.
The man who aims to reach the pole need
not necessarily be one who has great mus
cular development or unusual powers OF en-
during cold. nor need he be an experienced
pedestrian. His success or his failure will
be measured by his ability to carry supplies,
and by his power to adapt himself to the
other-world conditions of life which obtain
In such an undertaking. The beautiful sue
cess of Lieut.. Peary, DR.. Nansen and Prince
Luigi with dog sledges, with old and tried
methods, and the unfortunate failure OF
Wellman and Jackson, with their many
newly invented articles of equipment,
clearly prove that must work along the
line of the old efforts. The pole is in no
danger of being captured by the sudden
walk to 1t with our luggage.
How 1t May he Reached.
1t is possible to push to the sOth parallel,
or very close to it, with a supply ship. In
some longitudes a vessel could force her
way further IN others not quite so far, but
ten degrees is, in general way. the dis
lance to be covered on foot over rough sea
ice by an exploring party. Allowing for the
many certain detourS and the return jour-
ney this distance will figure up to not less
than 100 geographical miles. No men, II
matters not how adept they have become or
how perfect their equipment, are likely to
average more than twelve miles daily. The
surface of the ice IS such that there are
many days when the party will exhaust all
it's strength in advancing two or three
miles, and then there are the storms, the
many soul-racking tempests. which often
make active work impossible for several
successive days When the ice Is smooth
and the weather favorable 1t will at times
be easy to cover from twenty to thirty miles
daily, but an average Of twelve miles for
all kinds Of going is a maximum. Since the
distance is 2,100 miles, 1t would require
nearly six months to make the journey to
the pole and back again.
Men who have been in the polar regions
know that it is possible to spend six months
camping on ice and subsisting on the sim
plest foods. 1t is true that with this kind
of life there is considerable risk Of sudden
heart or kidney disease, and there is always
the possibility of scurvy and fatal kind
of anaemia Health, success and even life
depend upon the quality and the amount of
food, fuel and clothing. and ample expert
ence has shown that it Is impossible to car
ry a sufficient supply Of these for a period
of six months.
An Advance Station.
That which constitutes a possibility for
man with his present means to reach the
pole is the reasonable certainty of pushing
an advance station beyond the SD degree
of latitude. To this then may be added an
other hope which it is always reasonable
to entertain; that of securing some game
en- route From the SOth to the Saith paral-
lei, over the more difficult ice of the outer
fringe of the pack, there is good prospect
of securing bears. seals am birds. both on
the poleward and on the homeward jour-
ney. This probability Of securing game
may be reckoned as being equal to another
supply station at the Saith parallel We
thus have but 9 degrees to cover In Which
we cannot expect to augment the food sup
ply. This distance with the return and the
detours would make a total distance of
800 miles. A well-equipped party of the
right sort of men would cover this distance
in 100 days. Peary has made a longer jour-
ney in less time over the interior of Green
land. To small body of well-equipped
men. who understand the true conditions
of polar life and are willing to adopt a life
of deprivation, the north pole is accessible.
Appalling Difficulties.
We now know with a reasonable probable
ity. the conditions which are likely to OBJ
tain In a journey to the north pole. The
recent explorations have proved an extern
sive and deep sea in the arctic basin. If
land exists beyond the known regions 1t is
in all probability Of small extent 1t fol-
lows then that the pole Is the center of a
frozen ocean, and the man who seeks to
find 1t must plan to pick his way over a
lifeless and moving sea Of Ice. The man
who aims to reach the south pole, however,
has before him a series Of difficulties which
are of another and a more forbidding char
acter.
The entire region within the antarctic
circle. an area as large as the continent OF
North America, is more or less involved in
mystery. Indeed. most of 1t is a blank
upon our charts. No well-directed effort
There have been expeditions to the fan
south, but they have found sufficient work
along the edge of the pack ice to fulfill
their missions. From the observation OF
these expeditions we are warranted in
building up hypothetical continent around
the south pole which spreads out to ar
area of about the size Of the United States
This continent is extremely high, If we may
judge from the few edges which have been
actually seen. There are mountains from
1900 to 1900 feet in altitude. Some are
volcanoes in active eruption, others are ex-
tinct. Some mountains are covered tC
tnelF peaks WIFI SHOW, OtnerS push tne11
sharp peaks of hard rocks through the in.
land ice to the frosty skies. But enyeIop-
ing this great continent there Is an over.
land sea of ice which has an unknown
depth.
Buried Deep Beneath Ice.
This great overland ice is piled upon the
antarctic highlands by the vapor-chargeG
breezes which sweep the circumpolar wa.
ters. 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 northwaro
| as icebergs. In addition to being weighted
down by the accumulated frost of thou
| sands Of years the land is guarded by the
| hand of nature in another remarkable man
! ner. Around the globe. close to the ant.
| arctic circle, there Is an unyielding sea OF
! ice which spreads out from 400 to SN
miles. thus completely fencing Off the lane
| by an almost impenetrable barrier Of frozer
| surface waters.
| The man who plans to mount to the south
| pole must first find a passage through the
! drifting pack Ice and then face the colos-
| sal problem of ascending a cliff of glacial
Ice hundreds Of feet in height. After he
has scaled this he has to devise means OF
| bridging enormous death-dealing crevasses
| and then he has to pull up art-sicken.
| ing ascent to attitudes where the bitter cold
l ,,n1y e. 1v>.<~. H. IL