El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1917-02-10

| deep, and pillars could be erected 10
! support the bridges which might be
] low the floating icebergs to pass
! through This seems ridiculous to any
/ enc who understands the great ice
l foes Of the arctic region 1t is doubt
: full whether the bridges could be made
/ on account of the depth Of the strait.
I and they would certainly be destroyed
! BIZ the ice. Contrary to what many be-
lieve. Boring strait is seldom covered
with ice. 1t connects Boring sea with
! the Arctic ocean. and there is a strong
current which flows through it to the
I north. This keeps il open in winter.
but there are ice foes on each side Of
it, and the waters carry such masses
of ice that it is navigable only in sum
mer.
Today about the only ships that go
through the strait are a small steamer
or so and the whalers which ply the
Arctic ocean to catch the right whale.
single one of which viii often net q
much as $4,000. Some OF our revenue
cutters also 20 through. and there are
summer which carry supplies TO Kotze-
bue sound and the northern ports of
the Seward peninsula
Moreover. it is questionable whether
bridges could be built from shore TO
shore on account OF the difficulty of
connecting the mainland and the
islands. Cape Prince of Wales and
East Cape, Siberia. are both bold and
rocky headlands connected with the
mainland by low neck of rolling
Has Walls 1000 Feet High.
Cape Prince of Wales has on one
side walls about 1000 feet nigh, and
these rise into uplands a half mile
above the level of the sea When the
most anywhere inside the strait. The
Diomede Islands have steep shores
which rise 10 flat top submits that
occupy nearly their entire areas; and
Sr~T,s
haycock rising out of the water.
BerinS strait was not discovered I'M
III more than two and one-haf centu-
ries after Columbus first crossed the
Atlantic that there was no positive
knowledge that the North American
continent came so near Asia until al
most 100 years later
The first record of any men going
through this strait was that of Simeon
heshnef. a Russian, who rounded East
ape. Siberia, and wintered at the Ana
cir river about Is years after Boston
The strait is usually foggy and
'eshnef did not see North America
about 50 years later another Russian
visited the East cape and brought back
rumors of a continent TO the eastward.
This was POpof. a COssack- who was
sent out TO make the Eskimos of east
ern Siberia pay their tribute to the
ear. PopOf described the Dionede
Islands, and must have seen North !
America, as Cape Prince Of Wales is /
plainly visible from them. =
When the news came back to Peter (!
the Great, who was then car, he /!
wanted TO know more about the new 4
continent, and ordered Nitus Berins. a !
Danish captain of the Russian navy. /
TO 20 there and explore. Later on !
atherine Of Russia carried out this
plan. Berins crossed Siberia and built 4
wO small vessels on the Bay OF !
Jkhotsk He sailed through the strait
5ut came back without having sighted
he American continent and il was not
until so years later, when Capt. Cook !
'Sssed through, that the strait was ex-
,lored and named Boring strait.
Would Create Great Supply Port.
The railroad from Nome TO Siberia (
would probably run along the coast.
ouching at Port Clarence. which is a I
title south of Cape Prince of Wales |
hat port would be the great supply
'Oint for railway materials 1t is about !
he best harbor on Bering strait 1t has