The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1909-08-30
GEOGRAPHICAL KNOWLEDGE

A. Henry Savage Landor, the dar-
ing explorer, will soon make an at
tempt to reach the South Pole. He
Is OF the oyinoin that Lieutenant
Shackelton failed through having a
cumbersome and unnecessarily large
expedition. Mr.. Landor's theory is
that a small caravan OF trusted and
hardy men, lightly equipped, like his
expeditions through Asia and Afri-
ca, is best. His activity in aeronau-
tic investigations gives color to the
rumor that an airship will be used by
him to reach the pole. 1t is known
that for long time Mr.. Landor has
been engaged in the construction OF
an aerial car which would carry him
self and small party OF followers to
their destination. He prefers to take
chances in an airship rather than a
balloon, because he estimates the
speed and control OF an aeroplane will
so far surpass an ordinary gas bag
that the danger will be reduced to a
minimum. The outfit will be taken
as far south as possible by ship and
then conveyed overland to near the
point OF Lieutenant Shackelton's
camp. From there the final flight will
be made
Landor is a man who has done
great things both in Asiatic and Afri-
can exploration and has nothing of
the Walter Wellman about him. The
Inter is a publicity agent who has
done his best to make American polar
expeditions ridiculous and is no long
er taken seriously by anybody. It
seems reasonably certain that within
few years, perhaps within a few
months some bold explorer will solve
carth's greatest physical mystery and
gaze upon one or other Of the poles.
The rapid improvement in the con.
struction OF airships makes it possi-
Bile to fly above the poles and some
fortunate navigator of the air will
soon round out the worlds geogra-
pbical knowledge with a full report
OF what is to be seen at "the ends OF
the earth"
At the present day the world is
known from pole to pole, with the ex-
ception OF a small portion OF the
Arctic and Antarctic continents, as
they are often called. and it is not
likely that we will find any new races
near the poles. But it is astonishing
how ignorant men were or ages
about the world they lived in. Very
little intercourse existed between ma
tions in ancient times, and what in
tercourse did take place was general
ly OF a warllke nature. AS to the
shape OF the earth, the ancients differ /
ed. OF course. in extreme antiquity,
every one who thought about the
matter at all believed the world to be
flat. The early Hebrews and Greeks
had no doubt on that score. Homer
evidently regarded 1t as of compare
lively small extent and he thought
the ocean was mighty stream which
flowed around ii. We should never
forget that Homer was a sort OF Bible
te the classical world and that many
generations derived nearly all their
deas from his two great topics. In
iis time the earth was supposed to be
he center of the universe, and the
'un. the moon and the stars were
upposed TO be large balls OF FIRE
ew miles up in the air. attached, in
anne mysterious manner TO the walls
4 the sky. which walls revolyed
round the earth taking the stars
'ith them.
The universe itself was very small
Rair which the gods, who dwelt up
. Mount Olympus, by no means a