Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1912-03-15
SKETCH OF CAPT. AMUNDSENj
Arctic Exploration Has Been the
Dream of His Life Since Early
Manhood

Arctic Exploration Has Been the
Dream of His Life Since Early
Manhood.
Roald kmundsen, now about 40
years old. has proved himself one OF
the most competent explorers. BE-
sides reaching the south pole he 10
the first and only man to accomplish
the long attempted feat Of taking a
ship, from the Atlantic to the Pacific
by the northwest passage He has
made at a point within a short dis
lance of the magnetic pole the only
set OF complete polar magnetic OBJ
servations ever taken.
Amundsen was born at Sarpsburg,i
Norway, and in his childhood movedl
with his parents to Christfania. Hist
parents destined him for medicine.
For one year he was a medical stu
dent, but at his mothers death, when
he was 10 years old, he gave up thes
intended career and went to sea-. Forl
number of years he cruised in the,
north as whaier and sealer on Nor
wegian vessels.
| Amundsen had his first taste or
exp. loration when I'm 1897 he went as
first officer with the Belgica on Ger
lach's Belgian polar expedition. Fromi
what he learned Of the work and ad-I
venture of exploring on this trip and
from the second Norwegian polar ex-
! petition of 1898, he became filed with
arctic ambitions Of his own. He formed
the project not Of attaining the geo.
graphic pole sought by so many, butt
of trying the long-neglected northwest
passage and approaching and study
| ing while on his way the lfttle-knowni
magnetic pole.
1t took Amundsen several years to
prepare himself for his trip. For two
years he studied, first In Hamburg I'M
der Neumayer, authority on magnet
ism; in Berlin under Schmidt, and
finally at Wilhelmshafen under Bor-
gen in the meteorological station. His
mental preparation over, he spent two
years more in raising funds and OUT
fitting his expedition.
The Amundsen magnetic expedition
was perhaps the most modestly ap-
Of discovery into the arduous field OF
the arctic. It's cost was $4,000. a
large part of this Amundsens own
money. Frithjof hansen, the Norwe-
gian polar explorer, close friend and
faithful helper of Amundsen, helped
raise another large part. Amundsen
was finally able to put off from Chris
tiania in the little Alton sloop Gjoa
on June II. 1903.
Voyage of Gjoa.
The Gjoa sailed around the north,
end Of America, reaching the mouth
of the Mackenzie river about Septem-
Der 8, 1905. 1t went by way Of Baf-
fms bay, Lancaster sound Barrow
strait, Peel sound, James Ross strait
and Rae strait. Twice 1t wintered in
the ice. For period OF many months
during this voyage Amundsen main
tanned an observatory on King VIII
Iiams land, at latitude 6S degrees 30
minutes, longitude 80 degrees west,
within 80 miles, as he calculated, Of
the magnetic pole.
The northwest trip, fulfilling the
dream of the early navigator, brought
Amundsen great renOwn. He then
planned an expedition to drift around
to the North Polar sea, but changed
his mind after starting and went to
find the Antarctic pole.
The last word which was heard
from Amundsen before his dash to the
pole was received in New York on
July 8, 1911. After describing the
splendid qualities of the Fran during
its 16000-mile voyage, and the care
taken of the 100 Eskimo dogs, which,
had become IFS at the time of landing,
he said:
I'VE sighted the mighty barrier at
80 D. M Jan. II. One would be less
than human If one could behold such
sight unmoved. AS far as the eye
can see from western TO eastern hori-
zon this wall of ice rises perpendicu-
larry to a height of 100 feet. And yet
it is only very small part of it that
one Sees What must the man have
thought who first came upon this WALL,
and for whom all further advance
seemed an impossibility? 1t was one
of the worlds boldest and cleverest
k1OI W Say Ihc NAS'VA VIZ VI
them alb, James Clark Ross, who4
after making his way through the ice
pack with his two sailing vessels, the
Erebus and the Terror, came, In Feb
ruary, 1912, upon this remarkable Ice
wall Even at that time he observed
the great bay, but, of course, did not
venture into it with sailing vessels.
For years after the Barrier was re-
garded as a bar to all further advance
southwark.