Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1909-10-29
By DR.. FREDERICK A. COOK

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2 Canada In Accordance With Copy.
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+ leo Under Laws Of the Republic
( Of Mexico. All Rights Reserved
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0N snowshoes and with spread
legs / led the way. The sleGs
" with light loads followed. The
surface vlbrated as we moved
along. but the spiked handle Of the ice
* did not easily pass through. For
about two miles we walked with an
easy tread and considerable anxiety.
but we had all been on similar ice be-
fore and we knew that with ready
line and careful watchfulness there
was no great danger. A cold bath,
however. in that temperature. forty
degrees below. could have had some
serious consequences. In two crossings
all our supplies were safely landed on
the north shores, and from there the
lead had more picturesque effect.
For a time this huge separation in
the pack was a mystery to me. At
first sight there seemed to be no good
reason for its existence. Peary had
found a similar break north Of Robe
son channel. 1t seemed likely that
what we saw was an extension Of the
same lead following at distance the
~onor,l trapd of rho mort horp p,nSt In nd
extension.
This Is precisely what one finds on
q smaller scale wherever two f." l'acks
come together. Here we have III. pack
of the central polar sea melting the
land ice. The movement Of the land
pack Is intermittent and usually along
the coast. The shadows. grounded ice
and projecting points interfere with a
steady drift. The movement Of the
central pack is quite constant and al
most In every direction.
The tides. the currents and the
winds each give momentum to the
floating mass. This lead Is the break
ing line between the two bodies Of ice.
1t widens as the pack separates. mar
rows or widens with an easterly or
westerly drift. according to the pres
sure of the central pack. Early in
the season when the pack Is little Gre
vassed and not elastic 1t is probably
wide; later, as the entire sea of ice
becomes active. 1t may disappear or
shift to a line nearer the land.
New Ice Stops Drift.
In low temperature new ice forms
rapidly. and this offers an obstruction
to the drift Of the old ice. AS the
heavy central ice is pressed against
the unyielding land pack the small Ice
is ground up. and even heavy foes are
crushed. This reduced mass Of small
ice is pasted and cemented along rhe'
shores Of the big lead. leaving broad
band Of troublesome surface as seri-
Gus barrier to sled travel. 1t seems
quite likely that this lead. or a condi-
ton similar to It. extends entirely
around the polar sea as buffer be-
tween the land and the middle pack.
With the big lead and its many pos
sibilities for troublesome delay behind.
course was set to reach the eighty
fifth parallel on the ninety-seventh
meridian. What little movement was
noted on the ice had been easterly,
and to allow for this drift we aimed
to keep a line slightly west Of the
pole.
The wind was not troublesome fac
tor as we forged along for the first day
over this central pack. After run Of
eleven hours the pedometer registered
twenty-three miles. but we had taken
q zigzag course and therefore only
placed seventeen miles to our credit.
The night was beautiful. The sun
sank into purple haze. and sooD there
appeared three suns in prismatic COL
ors. and these soon settled into the
frozen sea. During the night mar
row band of orange frightened the
northern skies. while the pack surface
glowed in magnificent shades Of violet
and lilac and pale purple blue.
Land Clouds Still Visible.
Satisfactory observations at noon on
March "a gave our position as latitude
SO degrees 81 minutes. longitude 98
degrees q minutes. The land clouds
of Grant Land were still visible. and
q low bank Of mist in the west occa-
sionally frightened. Offering an outline
suggestive of land. This we believed
to be Crocker Land. but mist persist
emily screened the horizon and did not
offer an opportunity to study the con-
tour.
Until midday the time was used for
observations and study Of the land
conditions. The dogs shifted the air as
II scenting game, but after a diligent
search one seal blowhole was found
and an old bear track. but no alga or
other small life was detected in the
water Of the crevices. At the big lead
a few algae were gathered. but here
the sea was sterile The signs of seal
and bear, however. were encouraging
for possible food supply. In return
ing the season would be more advanc-
ed, and the life might move north
ward. thus permitting an extension of
the time allowance Of our rations.
Though the heat Of the sun was
barely felt, its rays began to pierce
the eye with painful effects. The
bright light. being reflected from the
spotless surface Of the storm driven
SHOWS, could not long be endured even
by the Eskimos without some protec-
ton. The amber coored goggles that
we had made at Annootok from the
glass of the Photographic supplies now
proved a priceless discovery. They
effectually removed one Of the greatest
torments to arctic travel.
The darkened or smoky glasses. blue
glasses and ordinary automobile Cog
giles had all been tried with Indifferent
results. They failed for one reason or
ar other. mostly because Of an insult
ficient range of vision or q faulty con-
str1ction, making 1t impossible to pro-
ceed more than few minutes without
removing the accumulated condensa
tion.