The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-02-08
Ice-Bound Antdrctic May
 Yet Be Commercial Field
Expedition Planned for Next Spring Has Among Its Ob iects to Determine Whether Southern Polar
 Region May Become Source of Raw Materials
nr cRossIEY DAVIES

New South Wales, an eminent authority on Antarctic geology. has shown that geologically the Western Antarctic mountains resemble the South American Andes and has come to the conclusion from his researches, both in the Ant arctic and at home, that there is more than a possibility of finding gold"
 Besides minerals there are also whales A member of the expedition, who has been to the Antarctic on pre- vious exploration, told me that they hoped to find new whaling stations as the whales have deserted the old ones. The Antarctic whaling industry is lu- cratfve and extensive. But there are still vast, uncharted areas where prop CT scientific exploration might well lead to great new whale fisheries. The | cost of the expedition. which is to be l known as the British Imperial Ant arctic Expedition, is put at about S700, 1 e00 A council. of which the lord mayor 1 of London is chairman. has been formed 1 70 raise the money. The Terra Nova, | a vessel famous in Antarctic annals, | has been obtained fo rthe venture l She will be fitted with Beardmore oil 1 engines and will carry 300 tons of kero- | sene Ordinary crude oil could not be I taken as it would freeze roo quickly i The oil will be also used for the ships 1 gallery and for heating stoves Electric l lighting wireless and salvage pun D. ing plants will form important items l of equipment. 1 "Only about two ships so far have l gone to the Antarctic equipped with | wireless" l was told at the offices Of l the expedition Those shops had toe short a range to be of real value so far l as keeping in touch with civilization 1 was concerned Our vessel will have < long range equipment and telescope n asts on bases about eight feet square 1 When we are frozen in we shall ereci them. There are big wireless stations l ithin 900 to 1000 miles of whert we should be-"
 The "Terra Nova" will yarry fifty eight men. The commando J. L. Cope, ac- companied the British imperial trans r4tiaHfic sutton of 1si4-ls as surgeon and biologist fRose sea party). The Ihie of the scientific staff will be Capt. H. Il Wilkins, chief of scientific staff on th Stefansson expedition. It is being organ
 zed in connection with the Falklan' Islands dependencies and has the appro val of the Royal Geographical Society
 The Terra Nova'' is expected to leav
 England next June for Wellington, Nev Zealand. She will go from Wellington tt
 Maquarie Island, where geological sur
 vey will be made. A wireless apd meteor
 ological station is to be established a Scott Island and then she will proceed |
 the Ross sea to set up headauarter'
 probably at New Harbor. Parties vii b
 landed here and huts built for the mai
 base Another hut vii be placed at Cap
 Crozier (Ross Island) and thence part will set out on the Barrier. The study c
 the Emperor Penquin and the Antarcti
 winter at this point, which was begu
 but not finished by Saptain Scoot, wi
 be pursued. The Barrie party will stud
 the Antarctic winter on the Barrier sur
 face.
 In the following summer it is expecte
 that the Terra Nova will pick bot
 parties up at Cape Crosier and land ther
 at New Harbor. Meantime the Ter
 Nova vii have returned to New zes
 land for coal and provision for for lyears
 From the expedition's headduartei
 parties will make a geological explorauo ] of the western mountains for mineral dt
 posfts. Special attention will also ?
 given to meteorological conditions. TIT