The sun., 1903-10-04
CONDITIONS IN THE ARCTIC.
Facts That Indicate That the ZleGler Ex-
pedition May he Frozen In.

peU1tbOu MAY D0 FTOzCn
Those who have studied the difficulties
Of navigation In the Arctic are not much
surprised by the tidings brought by the
letter which William Ziegler has received
from Anthony Fiala, In command Of his
North Polar expedition. The letter was
written in Barents Sea. between Nova
Zembla and Franz Josef Land, and was
brought south by q sealer which Ziegler's
steamer America happened to meet
The expedition had been following the
edge Of the Ice pack west Of Nova Zembla
for many miles vainly looking for lead
through which to push north. 1t was
about to turn westward, nearer to Spitz-
bergen. in the hope Of finding an opening to
the north.
When the ioe conditions are dificult in
Barents Sea the fact is generally due to
prevailing easterly winds which bring great
masses OF ice from the Arctic Ocean. This
ice is piled UP against the eastern shores of
Spitxbergen. rendering them unapproach-
able.
As a rule tho waters between Nova
Zembla and Franz Josef Land may be
crossed by . steamer every year. Some
times, however, it Is impossible to push
through the ice to Franz Josef Land.
Further news Of the Ziegler expedition
may not be received till next summer, but
whom it comes 1t will be read with interest;
for the conditions this year are such that
1t will not be surprising II the America Is
frozen In and will be compelled to spend
the coming winter helplessly in the ice
between Europe and Franz Josef Land.
The Tegetthof, on which Weyprecht and
Payer. the Austrian explorers, discovered
Franz Josef Land, on Aug. 80, 1873, had
exactly this experience. The vessel. steam
ing north, succeeded in pushing into the ice,
but was caught fast by the closing foe while
still within sight Of Nova Zembla
Her party had most miserable time as
they drifted slowly north through the dark
ness Of the following winter with ice blocks
piling up till they lowered fathoms high
above the ship. 1t seemed certain at times
that the vessel would be crushed so the
explorers built a house on the main foe,
where coal, food and other supplies were
stored.
They drifted north and west all through
the winter OF 1s72-7S and through the fol-
lowing summer until the last Of August,
when they finally saw tho outlines of bold
and rocky land rising before them. Their
toll and suffering had not all been in vain,
for they now knew that they had added q
new land to the known domain Of the
world.
Then came the great sledge journeys Of
the spring of 1874 which revealed large
part Of the archipelago they had discovered.
The Tegetthof, however, was never freed
from the Ice. She was abandoned on May
20, and the party succeeded with terrible
difficulty in dragging boats southwark to
the free sea, where they fell in with Russian
fishermen, who took them back to civiliza-
ton.
The Danish Meteorological Institute
recently published its report on the ice
conditions in the Arctic Sea in 1902 These
conditions were very unfavorable for navi-
CATION alike in Barents Sea, the region Of
Franz Josef Land and around Spitzbergen,
East Greenland and Iceland.
The European Arctic has had two sue
cessive bad ice years, which was very un-
fortunate both for the Ziegler expedition,
under Mr.. Baldwin last year, and for the
present expedition under Mr.. Fiala. 1t
will be good news indeed II 1t is learned
that. by some happy chance, Fiala has
reached Franz Josef Land this season and
is able to do the fall work preliminary to
his proposed sledge journey to the Far
North next season.