The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1921-01-22
Sixteen Exploration Expeditions
Are Now in Progress or
in Contemplation.
MANY PROBLEMS TO Be SOLVED
Most important Enterprise Is British
Antarctic Expedition Headed by
Commander John Lachlan Cope
-Amundsen Is Trying for North .
- Pole. -.------------

cApeultlOuS are uOW LII plOS1CSo VI
in contemplation after four years of
inactivity in this line Of scientific re-
search due to the great war. Most
of these enterprises have been under
taken or projected since the armistice,
and they recall the fact that mother
earth still has important biological,
geological, geological, chronological and
meteorological problems to be solved.
One Of the most important Of these
enterprises is the British Antarctic
expedition, headed by Commander
John Lachlan Cope, F. r. G. S., for
merly of the British navy. 1t is f.
nanced for $75O,00O, includes five
ships, 1926 men, several airplanes and
extensive wireless apparatus. The
undertaking is to require five years
and it's objects are the circumnavi-
cation Of the Antarctic sea, dash
to the south pole, the locating Of new
whaling grounds and the discovery
of supposedly rich gold, silver, coal
and ruby fields,
Capt. ROald Amundsen, who discOv.
cred the south pole in 1911, left Nome,
Alaska, last August in an attempt to
reach the north pole. His ship, the
Maud, had already spent nineteen
months in the Arctic, north of Asia
and Europe, and had successfully made
the northeast passage. He expected
the Maud to be locked in the ice pack
and to drift toward the pole when
the Arctic winter ended. In negoti-
ating his way to Nome he was fire.
quently compelled to blast path
through the ice.
Captain Amundsen was last heard
of off East cape, about ITO miles north
west of Nome in the Boring strait.
The explorer, on account of high wages
and scarcity of men, was handicapped
by lack Of help, his only companions
being three sailors and an Eskimo
cook.
Other Prospects on Foot.
The other interesting expeditions
projected or now under way are as
follows:
Siberia-Capt. Axel Landmark and
Capt. John Vatney, in 5O-foot power
boat are on a 4,0O0-mile voyage to
KOlyma river, using primitive chart
made in 1878 by Nordenskjold a Swed-
ish explorer on his voyage from Nor
way to Japan via the Arctic ocean.
Greenland-Knud Rasmussen, Dan
ish explorer, who returned from the
east coast late in 1919, after studying
Eskimo tribes, is preparing for an
other expedition Of five years dura-
ton. LANCE Koch, another Dane, is
planning a scientific survey of North
Greenland, his main purpose being to
establish Danish sovereignty in that
territory.
Africa-FOur expeditions are in prog
'ress, namely, the Mackie chronological
expedition to Central Africa for the
purpose Of studying the Bahima, one
Of the chief pastoral tribes of An
kOle, a district west of Uganda; the
British natural history of museum ex-
petitions to the west coast and the
Jeb-Maria mountains THE duke of
AbruzZi's effort to find the sources of
the Webb Shebeli river, which flows
from Abyssinia through Italian Somali-
land into the Indian ocean, and the
chronological tour Of the Belgian pOr-
ton Of Tanganyika and the eastern
Congo, by T. A. Barns, who explored
the Ituri and Semliki forests. finding
a strange race Of pigmy savages, as
well as gathering a wonderful collec-
ton of moths and butterflies.
Baffin Land-Donald P. Macmillan,
who was with Admiral Peary plans to
start next year to explore one of the
richest fields in the far north He
expects to establish camp 700 miles
south of Etah in Northwest Greenland,
where his Croker Land expedition
passed four winters. He will attempt
to circumnavigate Baffin Land and
= penetrate 1900 miles of it's western
coast.
Nova Zembla-Dr Olaf Holtedahl Of
ChriStiania university is organizing a
northwestern natural science and ge-
. illogical expedition to this country and
plans to start next summer.
Mexico-Prof Emelio Oddone, a
famous Neapolitan seismologist, repre-
sentlng the Italian government, is now
studying the earthquake situation in
! Mexico by means of his 'inerviam-
eter,'' an invention by which he is able
to measure both motion and energy.
Will Explore Amazon.
The ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS of this
great river to be undertaken by large
party of American scientists, headed
by DIR. Henry II. Rusby of Columbia
university. The party expects to leave
early in January and to traverse more
than 1000 miles of almost virgin land
in the upper reaches of the river basin.
DR.. Rusby is to, be accompanied by DR..
David Starr Jordan, president Of Lee
land Stanford, Jr. university and DR..
Carl H. Eingemann of the University
of Indiana, who are to study fish and
reptiles: DN Ruthyen Of the Univers-
ity of Michigan, who is to study frogs,
and DR.. Edward Kromers Of the Uni
& versity of Wisconsin, and Prof. a. n.
Gill Of the Massachusetts Institute OF