Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-11-21
assist in gliding the balloon whittier
the aeronaut willed.


Four hundred miles day were to be
told of as the good ship sailed over
the arctic wastes. and the north pole
was to be reached in forty-three hours.
while at the end Of the sixth day Boring
sea was to be crossed. on the other side
of the arctic circle. AS forty to fifty
days supply of gas and food was taken
along. it would surely be an easy mat
ter to sail down into some civilized re-
gion of the American or Asiatic CONT
nent.
Andree called for volunteers. and
goodly list of notwithstanding young
Swedes applied for share Of the non
ors of the most daring cruise yet at
tempted by man. From among these
he selected two athletic fellows. mis-
Strindberg. twenty-five years old,
and devotee Of outdoor sports, and knut
Frankel. twenty-seven years old. civil
engineer. arctic hunter. champion
skater and snowshoe runner.
Small trial balloons were sent up on
the morning Of July II, 1897, and they
sailed rapidly to the north, thus setting
the poleward pace. Prayers were next
said upon the deck of supply vessel
in the harbor. and then the balloon was
inflated and it's shed unroofed to let
it out.
1t was restless to get under way when
the three Adventures climbed in at
2:50 in the afternoon. and. when the
line was cut. it leaped impatiently into
the air. After it had gone part way
out over the harbor contrary wind
drove it back for a while, but. after
barely missing some high cliffs: 1t
found friendly current. which. catch
the sea Then the wind pressed 1t
down until the car dipped into the
water; but it soon rose again. cleared
the rocks of an isle across the haroor.
settled down to a steady progress
northward. and vanished from sight at
3 pm. when travelling about half
mile above the sea
Since then the world has waited over
nineteen years for some news OF An
dree and his Eagle. 1t has been a
terrible vigil for the loved ones left
behind by Andree and his little crew.
IA sorts of conflicting rumors have
accounted for the fate of the three
aeronauts. One of these was brought
down from the arctic regions of upper
Canada by veteran of the frozen
north. William Irvine, who had served
the Hudson Bay Company for fifty
seven years Touching at Prince AL
bert. Saskatchewan, 100 miles below
his trading post. he there told strange
story TO the CANADIAN autnoFltleSs~ " uo
dispatched it over to Sweden.
Shortly before leaving his frigid sta
ton this aged man had been visited by
an Indian from the Mackenzie river re-
gion. The red man told of having met.
in the previous winter, band of Eski-
mos laden with strange goods, of a
quality and kind unknown to their
parts. Among these articles were in
struments and fittings of brass, cook
ing utensils of ingenious workman
ship and a generous supply of cordage,
also of waterproof cloth.
The Indian, upon questioning the
Eskimos. heard from their lips this
strange tale:
Once when hunting upon the shores
of the Arctic sea they had beheld in
the sky a wondrous apparition. resem-
bling vast "oomiak," or woman's
boat. 1t came down to earth and there
dropped out of it three white-faced be-
ings.
For while the people so feared the
great "oomiak' that they would not go
near it. but at length they gathered
their courage and entered it, securing
these strange things. which the Indian
afterward saw. besides much provi-
sions. guns and ammunition.
According to one story; heard by Ir-
vine. the Indians killed the three occu-
pants of the big balloon, but the evil
dence as to this was rather vague.
The real fate of Andree and his COM
panions is likely to remain a mystery
until the end of time.