The Washington times., 1909-09-15

WILLIAM 7. STEAD.
ed-showed that we had reached lati-
tude 50 degrees SO minutes and 46 sec
oEds, and were there fore within a
stone s-throw, almost If the ninetieth
parallel. We advanced he IA seconds
approximately a quarter of a mile-and
there ! made a double round OF observa-
tons which confirmed our position
This was at noon o. April n, 1908.
My observations showed that the lati-
tude was precisely 80 degrees The
temperature was IS degrees below zero.
The barometer stood at 1888 degrees.
There was no land in sight-nothing but
q depressing waste Of Ice and snow,
which appeared purple IN the light.
Old Glory Waves.
THE Eskimos, told that, at last, they
had reached the Big Nall. and were the
first of their race ever to have set foot
there. celebrated with savage joy. I
raised the flag Of the United States OF
America to.the breeze.
7 studied the local conditions as
much as possible and took observations
from various points within walking dis
lance. I was unable TO take any sound
ings Of the sea through crevices I found,
because 1 had lost my sounding line.
Until early in the day of April q,
1903. we remained at the Pole. Then.
realizing that the flag would he torn to
pieces within a few days, took it down
as we were about TO depart and placed
II in a brass tube together with a sign
ed report of my march from Etah. This
I buried in the ice, exactly at the North
Pole"
Or. Cook then told me Of his return
journey, which was far more difficult
and full of suffering than mis- upward
dash.
we counted on a continued eastward
drift Of he great ice-desert,' he said,
so We forced our way gradually west
ward TO overcome this. At first We
the eiEhty-seventh parallel the ice be-
came more difficult and we could tell
that the season was advancing.
Reduce Food Supply.
Daily we were obliged to reduce the
food supply. The sky turned from blue
10 dismal gray and violent gales occur
red 1t was not until May a, when
there was a clearing, that I was able 20
take an observation. 1 found we were
near the eighty-fourth parallel. In a
month we had covered about $50 miles,
but We were far TO the west Of our up
ward course. Going north, when we
reached the eighty-fourth degree Of lati-
tude, we were on the eighty-sixjh OF
longitude. Now we were on the ninety
seventh degree OF longitude We were
away from the fairly smooth ice we
had met to the east. The ice here was
broken and there were frequent stretches
of open water.
Starvation threstened. I found that
we had on our sledges only enough food
20 last us 10 our caches on hansen
sound, near Lands End, provided we
made fifteen miles day. We could
not make that. Therefore, we struck a
straight course for the musk oxen lands
Of the inner crossing.
AT the eighty-third parallel we found
ourselves to the west Of a large tract
Of land extending southwark. But there
was no sign Of game"
DIT. Cook believes this land was hith-
ertO undiscovered.
Again the food allowance for man
/ Many Of the dogs mad died and found
their way into their companions stOm-
achs. was scarcely able. because %
exhaustion, to record each days Incl
dents upon paper
Few Bears Available.
AT the end of twenty days more
struggle through dense fog the sky
cleared. and found we were in Crown
Prince Gustav sea: this is far below
and to the west Of whe-e the expedition
started from There a few bears ap-
peared as savers of our lives.
1T was impossible because of small
ice and open water. to get across 70 An.
natOok, so in June we went further
south. 10 Lancaster sound, hoping to b,
picked up by some Scottish whaling shin
But we met none
Early in July advance was stopped
altogether. We turned the dogs loOss
! to forage for themselves, and, in ou
folding boat, we endeavored TO get
across BafhD's bay, but could not Nov
we subsisted upon only an occasiona
bird, for we had neither fuel nor am.
munition.
AT last, late in September, we found
game at Cape SparbO. We made bows
and arrows. and Fashioned lances by fix
! ing knives to the end Of poles. We pre-
pared an underground den, and there We