Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1904-12-01
BUILDING PEARYS SHIP.
Vessel in Which the Explorer Will
Make Anoth4r Attempt to
Reach North Pole.

The vessel for the next Peary eXpedi-
ton to the north is to be built this win
ter at Verona, 10 miles down the Penob-
scot from Bangor, Me. Commander
Robert e. Peary has been busy superin-
tending some changes in the plans for
the model ship.
Great secrecy is maintained as to the
design of the vessel, and photographers
are not allowed in or near the model
loft. Commander Peary will not allow
any photographs to be made of the
model until after the ship has been
framed out, nor will he allow sketches
or drawings to be made.
A crew Of carpenters is at work build
ing a she'd 25O feet long, GO feet wide
and so feet high, under which the vessel
is to be constructed. This building is to
be heated by steam and lighted by cleo
tricity so that no time may be lost, as
the contract calls for the delivery of the
vessel at Portland, ready to receive her
machinery, on February 10. Shipbulld-
ing out-of-doors in Maine winter wealth
er is pretty slow and rather uncomfort-
able work
Thus far a little work has been done
ON the stern frame, but no great progress
can be made until the arrival from Vir-
ginia of the oak timbers for the keel,
and these timbers have been delayed by
an accident on a railroad near Washing
ton.
The keel will be very heavy, consist
ing of three sawed oak timbers, each 6
by inches, making when Joined 6X1S
keel.
These are to be planked with 6inch
hard pine, planed and calked, and out
side of that there will be oak sheathing,
planed and calked, with iron sheathing
over all.
Commander Peary said in an inter
view that his voyage this time would
probably occupy not less than 10
months, and should the weather be Sc
we're, might be extended to II months.
He continued:
"This new ship will be 1S4 feet long
on deck, 80 feet beam and 1G feet 8
inches depth of hold She will have an
extra heavy frame of Virginia oak, with
double bottom frames, and heavily
banked up with timber fore and aft.
"She will not be a three-masted
schooner with auxiliary steam, but
steamer with auxiliary sail-about 1000
square yards on three pole masts We
shall depend chiefly on the steam power,
using sail only when convenient or in
case her coal should become exhausted.
Her engines will be of / 900 indicated
horsepower but capable of developing
for limited periods, 1900 horsepower
That will make her by far the most
powerful ship ever constructed for the
arctic voyage, the best ship before this
having had only about $50 horsepower
81 shall fit out in New York, and prob
ably sail from there IN the early part
of July. We shall have only one sub
station for this expedition, that being
at Cape Sabine, in 79 degrees north lati-
tude, and | shall leave supplies there in
care of the natives. Then we shall go
north in the steamer as far as SO de-
grees, which will be within 500 mics Of
the pole.
Probably we shall be frozen in there,
and then we shall leave the vessel and
make the dash overland by sledges for
the pole. We may be able to get further
north than SO degrees with the steamer
That will depend on what kind of sea-
| son we have.
"There will not be more than Is men
in the party this time. My daughter
may go as far as Cape Sabine, but if so
she will return at the end of the sum-
mer"