Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-12-31
"GO, FIND THE POLE"
Startling Assignment to a
Washington Correspondent.
WILL UNDERTAKE TASK
AIRSHIP WILL BE BUILT UNDER
SANTOS DUMoNT's DIRECTION.
Important Mission Given to Walter
Wellman by Frank B. Noyes, Editor
OF the Chicago Record Herald.

of the Chicago Record d-HeraId.
| CHICAGO December So-"Buid nm air.
ship, go find the north pole and report by
wireless telegraphy and submarine cables
| the progress Of your efforts"
| This was the startling assignment given
Il rev days ago to Walter Wellman. WASH
| ington correspondent Of the Chicago Rec
| ord-Herald by Frank B. Noyes, editor-in-
| chief of the paper, and the commission has
| been accepted by Mr.. Wellman, it was an
| nounced tonight. AS an assistant in this
! expedition Mr.. Wellman will have the serv-
| ices of Alberto Santos Dumont of Paris.
who will have charge OF the construction
of the airship, and will act as aeronautlc
director and pilot of the ship on its voyage
| toward The North Pole
| The airship, the order for which has been
| given. will be built by Louis GODDARD Of
| Paris under the supervision of NJ Santos
| Dumont, and will be completed by the end
| of next April. No definite date has been
set for the start on the journey. but it is
expected that everything will be in readi-
| ness to get away next July early In
| August.
| After completion the airship will have
several trials at Paris, and in June all the
| paraDhernalia for the journey will be as
| sembled in Norway. Early in July head
| quarters will be established in Spitzbergen
| where the explorers will await a favorable
opportunity for the trip toward the pole,
| which. according to Mr.. Wellman. should
| the expedition meet with good run of
| luck. should be reached in less than a
wee::.
Wellman is Hopeful.
| In announcing his acceptance tonight Of
| the proposed expedition, Mr.. Wellman said
IF did not believe the chances OF sue
| cess were greater than those of failure I
should not accept the commission. Mr..
Noyes acted upon no sudden whim or i'm
pulse when he gave me the order to try to
| find the much-sought north pole, as he had
before him report. which had submitted
to him as ths outcome of two visits to tho
inner polar regions, of years of study of
| the problem of the pole. of many months
of special investigation of airship constrrc-
ton and navigation, the wind and climatic
conditions to be encountered, and all tho
| multitudinous mechanical and meteorologi-
cal factors involved In this investigation
scores of eminent experts and specialists
were consulted. vouminous technical
ports were received and finally complete,
symmetrical and at least promising project
was evolved by me representing SEEM
ingly practicable combination of the latest
development of many of the arts for ac-
complishing the result in view.
THE problem of reaching the north pole
by means Of an airship does not require
high speed, and the present state of the
art of aerial navigation by gas-buoyed and
motor-driven ships is ample for that pur-
pose From an easily reached base of OPP
erations In northern Spitzbergen we have
pole. and like distance for the return voy
age. If we take the whole at 1900 miles,
1t means but 100 hours of motoring at 12
miles an hour. Santos Dumont has repeat
edly made from 10 to 2S miles an hour with
small airships equipped with relatively
small motors.
The Proposed Airship.
THE airshp in which we purpose to at
tain the north pole will be the largest prac-
ticable airship ever built. 1t will be 1876
feet long and its greatest diameter viii be
40 feet. Its surface will measure $1,000
square feet and It's volume will be 226.OO0
cubic feet Inflated with hydrogen. 1t will
have a total ascensional force of 1890
pounds. Seven thousand pounds will be
the weight of the ship and its equipment
complete,s leaving 5000 pounds for cargo.
The ship will be provided with three mo-
tors with combined energy of 20 horse
power. If the winds hinder no more than
they help and there are no delays this ship
can motor from North Spitzbergen to the
pole in 40 hours. The airship Will have an
endurance capacity in buoyancy sufficient
to enable it to remain 25 to so days in the
air 1t will carry $500 pounds of gaso-
line and Its distance capacity during calm
weather will be 1,S00 miles more than the
distance from Spitzbergen straight across
the pole and the whole Arctic ocean to
Alaska.
LAS our atrship will be constructed it
will be able to make heaGway against two
thirds of all the winds that blow, even
though they may be squarely adverse. but
1t is part of our project to motor only with
favorable winds and to anchor our ship to
the ice and lie to- in unfavorable winds
of velocity exceeding one-half the normal
speed of our craft. The ship will be
equipped for safe anchorage in the high
est winds ever known in the Arctic re-
gion In fat, the ship will be subject to
the will and hand of the navigator just
like g steamship upon the ocean.
Airship Will Carry Five Men.
Besides the $500 pounds of fuel mem
toned the ship will carry five men, COM
Portable car to live In (which is also
boat In case of need, food and supplies for
seventy-fve days. and complete sledgfng
outfit ready for use should 1t be necessary
to abandon the airship. and take to the
ice II at the worst our ship of the air
carries US only to the vicinity of the pole,
or two-thirds of the way TO It, we have an
alternative method of travel by which we
may reasonably hope to complete our task
and make our return to land in safety.
..At no time will our airship be out of
touch with the surface of the earth Our
guide rope, called, but In our case
smooth. tapering line of steel, is to drag its
lower end over the ice, to keep the ship at
a fairly stable height Q50 to 200 feeD. the
altitude most favorable to wireless telegra-
phy and to maintain under ordinary condi-
tions the vertical stability OF the craft
Will Take Wireless Equipment.
wireless telegraph stations viii be estas-
Iished at Spitzbergen and Hammerfest,
szrs.