The Cordova daily times., 1921-07-19
MACMILLAN OFF
 ON EXPEDITION TOBAFFZNLAND
CRy Associated Pressl

B. MaCMillan and six adventurous fol lowers sailed from here Saturday bound for Baffin Land, and were cheered by two thousand admirers who gathered at the dock to wish them success.
 An attempt to map Baffin Land, the vast Arctic island southwest of Green land, whose 1,5OO miles of unexplored western coastlne is as much mys- tery today as when the English nav igator. William Baffin, announced its discovery in 1616, is the main objec- tive of the MacMillan expedition.
 The tiny 115.ton schooner. Bowdoin, which carries the party north was built at East Bootbay, Me.
 She was named for MacMillan's alma mater, has auxiliary power and embodies all the essentials for re- sisting terrific ice packs. The crew consists of six men. The vessel is of the Gloucester fisherman knock about type, sheathed with ironwood, 87 feet long, with a draught of 9l3 feet Crude oil engines capable of develop ing GO-horsepowed are included in her equipment, as well as 1000 gallons of fuel oil and 800 gallons of kerosene. The Bowdoin also carries stores and provisions sufficient to last her crew two years.
 The head of the expedition was Poary's chief lieutenant on the latter's successful dash to the North Pole in 1909. He has made eight voyages in to the Arctic regions. According to MacMillian's plans. he intends to reach Baffin Land about August 15 and establish camp south of the en- trance to the dangerous Fury and Hecla Strait. where the ships of Cap tains Parry and Lyon, seekers of the Northwest passage, were blocked a century ago The location in 16o miles north of the Arctic circle and 700 miles south of Etah. Greenland. It is not far from the point where Mac Williams Crocker Land expedition passed the four winters of l9l3-14-15. and 16. On that occasion the eXpe- dition once reported lost and two re- lief expeditions were sent out for it hut MacMillian finally returned. HeI announced that Crocker Land was not land" as believed possible by Parry but an ice mirage.
 During the winter of 1921-22. at temps will be made to explore the coast of Baffin Land and the follow ing summer an effort will be made to penetrate the interior where. accord ing to Eskimo tales there exists one of the richest and most alluring fields of research in the frozen north The island is said to have great min eral deposits and to possess high mountains and beautiful lakes which have never been seen by white men.
 The region is believed to be an i'm mense breeding ground for water fowl whose nesting habits will be the sub ject of study, while the program of the scientists of the expedition also calls for field work in zoology. botany. | metorology and terrestrial magnetism. Special observations will be taken of the magnetic pole which was located by James Ross in 1880 on the further side of the Boothia peninsula. not far from MacMillians proposed winter camp.
 An attempt will also be made to circumnavigate Baffin Land. In the event of a serious mishap to the Bow doin the party plans to retract by dog | slede to Fort Churchill, trading post of the foot of Hudson Bay. and thence return to civilization by way of north western Canada.
 MacMillan was born in Province town, Mass, November 10. 1874, the son of a Cape Cod sea captain. He was graduated from Bowdoin college in 1898 and took up postgraduate work | at Harvard in 19l0-l2 Before becom- ing an explorer he was teacher and public school principal. In addition to accompanying Peary on his last fam oue trip North, he was member Of the Cabot Labrador expedition in 1910 and as previously referred to, the lead CT of the Crocker Land expedition three years later. In 1911 and 1912 he made neurological studies of the Eskimos of Labrodor. He is unmar- ried.