Evening star., 1925-08-21
Polar Exploration.

Published accounts have it that
Donald Is. Macmillan has little faith
| in the airplane as a vehicle for polar
exploration, and that much of his
hope is pinned to the dirigible airship.
In a message to the National Geo
graphic Society he says that Arctic
work is extremely hazardous in heav
ing places are uncertain, and caches
of food and gas cannot be relied on.
He says that lighter than air ma
chimes can do the work and should do
it at the earliest opportunity.
The airplane has had two chances
in polar work, with Amundsen and
Mac MILAN, and the gasbag airship
has not been tried. This is an ex
plorer's problem, and only bold and
venturesome layman would sit in a
rocking chair and make any observa-
tions containing q single note of sug-
gestion, but 1t does seem that landing
places might be found for planes.
If there is any land, and that plane
bases ought to be created. 1t would
seem that mooring masts and hangers
will have to be built for any balloon
ship that goes out for Arctic explora-
ton. How gas-filled, textile-skin
ship will bear temperature lower than
anything known in the skies through
which dirigibles have flown is a ques
ton, and, according to explorers ac-
counts, the Arctic is a place where
bad storms rise quickly and last long.
Most of the Pole-reaching plans are
based upon the dash principle. Seize
a bit of fair weather, dash to the
Pole and get back to a place of safety
with all speeN A comprehensive ex-
ploration Of the great North does not
seem possible on the dash principle
Systematic exploration is needed. The
North Pole has been dashed" Peary
got there April 6, 1909. Nansen got
above the eighty-sixth parallel, less
than four degrees, or about 275 miles
from the Pole in 1895, and Cogni got
a few miles nearer in 1900. Maps
based on all data obtained by ex-
plorers show the top of the earth
wearing cap of ocean.
North polar exploration by small
parties has been going on, no one
knows how long, but in little more
than century we have had Parry
in 1S19-1S20. Franklin in 1S45-48,
the De Long-Jeanette expedition, 1880
1881, and a score of others. There has
been much tragedy. One wonders if
land exploration Of the Arctic could
not be carried out by building a base
stocked with supplies, and advancing
a post day or halliday march be.
yond, making it the base from which
d post would be established, another
march northward, and so on through
the ice wilderness, on the principle Of
building a railroad across the plains
of America or steppes of Siberia or
on the principle of an army crossing
enemy territory.
The mystery of the unexplored
North piques men of adventure, but
| in all probability the rocks at the
north of the world are not unlike
those two thousand miles south, and
their average of precious mineral con-
tent is probably the same average as
rocks the world over. The spectacular
work of small parties Of devoted men
| is thrilling. but If the object is to
find out all that is movable about
the North the creeping plan of ad-
vanciug from one base to another,
with communication to the inhabited
part of the world kept open, might
bring results. The plan would cover
d period OF years and the cost would
| have to be borne by a government
or by several governments.