The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1909-10-07

second march, Marvin obtained a sat
isfactory sight for latitude in clear
weather, which placed us at 85.48. The
result agreed satisfactorily with the
dead reckoning of Marvin, Bartlett
and myself
Up to this time, the slight altitude
of the sun had made it not worth
while to waste time in observations.
On the next two marches the going
improved, and we covered good dis
tances. In one of these marches a
lead delayed us few hours. We final
ly ferried across the ice cakes.
MAKES RECORD RUN.
The next day Bartlett let himself
out, evidently, for a record, and reeled
off 20 miles. Here Marvin obtained
another satisfactory sight on latitude,
which gave the position as 1888 Cor
beyond the farthest north of Nansen
and Abruzzi), and showed that we had
covered so minutes of latitude in three
marches.
In these three marches we had
passed the Norwegian ecord of 1914.
by hansen, and the Italian record of
1924, by Cagni.
From this point Marvin turned back
in command of the third supporting
party. My last words to him were:
BE careful of the leads. my boy"
The party from this point comprised
nine men, seven sledges, and so dogs.
The conditions at this camp and the
apparently unbroken expanse of fairly
level ice in very direction reminded
me of Cagni's description of his farth.
est north.
DANGER IS ENCOUNTERED.
But was not deceived by the ap-
parently favorable outlook, for avail
able conditions never continue for any
distance or any length of time in the
arctic regions.
The next march was over good 60
ing, but for the first time since leav-
ing land we experienced that condi.
ton, frequent over these ice fields, of
hay atmosphere, in which the light
is equal everywhere. All relief is de-
stroyed, and it is impossible to see
for any distance.
We were obliged in this march to
make a detour around an open lead.
In the next march we encountered the
heaviest and deepest snow of the
journey, thpough a thick, smothering
mantle lying in the depressions of
heavy rubble ice.
TEMPORARILY DISCOURAGED.
| came upon Bartlett and his party,
tagged out and temporarily discour-
aged by the heartracking work of
making road.
/ knew what was the matter with
them. They were simply spoiled by
the good going on the previous
marches. rallied them bit, light
ened their sledges, and sent them on
encouraged again.
During the next march we travelled
through thick haze drifting over the
ice before a biting air from the north
east. At the end of the march we
came upon the captain camped beside
wide open lead with dense black
water sky northwest. north. and north
east.
HAS NARROW ESCAPE
We built our igloos and turned in,
but before had fallen asleep l was
reused out by movement of the ice
and found a startling condition of af-
fairs-a apidly-widening road of black
water ran only few feet from our
igloos.
One of my teams of dogs had es-
capped by Only few feet from being
dragged by the movement of the ice
into the water.
Another team had an equally mar
row escape from being crushed by the
ice blocks piled over them. The ice
on the north side of the lead was NOV
ing around eastward. The small floor
on which were the captains igloos
was drifting eastward In the open
water, and the side of our igloos
threatened to follow suit
scAvED BY QUICK DASH.
Kicking out the door OF the igloos
called to the captains men to pack
their slcdges and be ready for quick
dash when favorable chance arrived.
We hurried our things On our
sledges, hitched the dogs. and moved
On 70 large Ice zoe wen .of hal