The Washington times., 1930-09-20
LONG BATTLE
ISDESCR|BED.
BY DIARY
Marooned Arctic Explorers
Marched in Wrong Direction
Knowing Aid Lay to South

(continued From Page -
Ing gasbag from Danes Island.
Spitzbergen.
However, to the vast disap7
pointment Of a waiting world,
the diary completely failed to re-
veal the circumstances leading
directly to the death Of the ex-
plorers. While experts blame ice
and cold, the mystery probably
will remain locked forever in The
heart of the arctic.
The resume as publ he'd V@ri-
fled in the main facts already
known, adding little to the heroic
account pieced together with the
discovery of the camp on Vitoef
white Island) In which the ad-
venturers breathed their last. 1t
revealed more graphically, If any.
thing, the pathetic picture of
three lone men in a hopeless
vastneSS of ice and cold fighting
against heart-breaking odds.
A mystifying angle lent by the
diary is the fact that Andree,
from all indications aware that
food stores were within marching
distance toward the South, de-
hberately went East and steered
q straight course away from the
food bases into the totally un-
kroWn territories of drifting ice
floes.
Turned To Eastward
Three provision depots awaited
him on the coast of Spitzbergen,
but he turned Eastward and made
9 dash to the North of Franz
Josef land.
The three men N their we'll
provisioned balloon left Danes
Island on July IL, 1897, and &C
Cording to the diary an accumu-
lation Of moisture, frost and ice
pressed the balloon so low on
July IL that its gondola Scraped
the ice, dragging along until July
IA, when its exhausted occupants
landed and organized for the trek
over the ice.
With civilization as their goal,
the trio struggled valiantly over
the icefields and battIed death
day in and day out over treacher-
ous crevices and sudden pools of
fresh water, which they crossed
in their frail canvas boat.
Their food reserves dwindled
and daily progress was gradually
reduced to a scant few miles.
I On August 4th they abandoned
their route and turned to the
southwest. hoping with the help
of icedrifts to reach the Seven
Islands on the north coast of
Spitzbergen, where food lay in
storage.
Shows Sense of HumOr
The immediate problem then
became the matter of securing
sufficient food until relief could
be reached. In describing the
solution they reached, Andree
more than ever revealed his fine
sense of humor-a humor he
employed to the utmost to keep
the spirits of his companions from
faltering. They warded off ster-
walton, Andree remarked. by sup
plying their larders from the
wandering meat shops of the
Arctic" meaning polar bears.
Gradually the hopeful trio
neared the north coast of Spitz-,
bergen, riding sometimes in COM
fort in their canvas boat between
the ice floes on open water.
Fraenkel, it seems. became the
master hand at baking blood
cakes" a mixture of polar bear
blood substituted for bread, while
Strindberg supplied soup brewed
out of seaweeds.
Cold Becomes Severe
Then the turning point in their
fortune came with the entering
into shallow waters on the north
coast of Northeast Land, where
the ice drift changed and frus-
trated them In their attempt to
reach Seven Islands. From Sep
tember IL to September II the
drift carried them relent1eSsly
southeast, the cold becoming al
most unbearable. With winter
+ AUpEOhC1l1A1B1 A1IO4CC OCC1QCO W
hibernate on the ice and an ice
hut was built.
In succeeding days the food
problem was alleviated with the
killing OF several seals and an
other polar bear, supplying them
with enough food until April.
A week later they moved into
their winter quarters, chriStened
'shome" by the men.
Story Ends Suddenly
on October 2, the trio was
awakened by a great noise like
8 ship collision, filled with grind
ing and grating sounds. Their
ice floe had split. Their food
and equipment was scattered
about on the various broken-off
ice cakes, and all three men
worked furiously to rescue their
precious stores. The ice hut had
cracked in two. Weary with this
enforced labor, Andree sat down
in the midst of his expedition
remnants and made the following
entry:
"At the beginning of this
But, ironically enough. it was
the end of the story. at least as
far as the diary went What
happened thereafter remains un-