Arizona state miner., 1925-07-11
GENERAL GREELY is CONFIDENT
NEW ARCTIC LAND WILL BE
FOUND BY USE OF AIRSHIP


With powerful engines driving Uni
ted States navy planes through the
air instead of dogs drawing sledges
over rough ice, there is every likeli-
hood of the Macmillan Arctic expedi-
ton under the auspices of the Ma
tional Geographic Society reaching
the hypothetical land north of Alaska,
according to Maj. A. W. GreeIy, dean
of living polar explorers who COM
mented on the latest effort to clear
up the secrets of the far north.
General Greedy commanded an ex-
pedition, sent to the Arctic by the
United States government in 1884,
and almost died of hunger at Cape
Sabine, Ellesmere Island, after relief
ships failed to reach him for two sea-
sons. Last summer Commander Mac
MILAN placed a National Geographic
society bronze memorial tablet on
Cape Sabine in honor of the sacrifice
Greely's men made in behalf of explor-
alton. The planes of the Macmillan
expedition will fly repeatedly over
Cape Sabine during the coming sum-
mer
Il am confident there is land of
some sort west of AxeI Heiberg island
and north of Alaska" said General
Greedy: II advanced that theory some
thing like forty years ago after [ had
observed peculiar f1at-topped icebergs
with well marked qualifications float
ing out of the Polar sea. Such land
where the yearly layers of snow are
not broken up, and are we'll known
in the Antarctic. No such icebergs
originate in Greenland or in the known
lands to the east, for the ice there
reaches the sea thru fjords and val
Ieys, and because of squeezing, the
qualifications are obliterated.
While l suggested the existence
OF land north of Alaska from my OBJ
servation of icebergs, other students
of the subject advanced the same
opinion based on the study of tidal
Illustrations. For more than a gen
GRAFTON explorers have hoped to reach
this supposed land; but apparently
the task is to great for dogs and sleds.
Macmillan went 130 miles toward the
objective few years ago but had to
turn back because of almost impass-
able ice, with the journey just started.
But by airp1anes it will be a different
the center Of the unknown region and
return should not be difficult under
taking. [ believe the trip will be
made with little difficulty and that
when this unknown region is visited
heretofore unmapped land will be
discovered
General Greeley recalled that last
summer British expedition success
Iully used an airplane in reconnais-
ance work northeast of Spitzbergen.
and on one flight approached to within
about 500 miles of the North Pole.
only one plane was used, and it was
small, with an engine of no great
power. The fact that this plane was
able to accomplish excellent survey
work and to cover areas which could
not have been reached otherwise,
gives assurance, in General GreeIev's
opinion, OF the complete success of the
expeditions air activities, to be car
r1ed on with two powerful United
States navy planes of a new amphib-
ian type.
When General Greely was in com
mand of his expedition at LADY,
Franklyn Bay, Ellesmere Island, in
the early eighties, he made the first
explorations of the interior of the
island, discovering a large fresh-water
lake and huge ford. The latter
bears his name. The planes of the |
Macmillan expedition, plan to criss-
cross Ellesmere Island this summer
making Photographic maps. General
Greedy said that he will follow with
interest the filling in of topographic !
details in this land of his pioneer
explorations.
Modern exploration methods furnish |
a striking contrast to those of a gen
GRAFTON or so ago, General GreeIy !
said. Recalling that the planes of the
expedition this summer will fly over