Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-08-11
SENDER RELATES
TALE OF 1902 ARCTIC
NOTE JUST FOUND
"BaffIed but Not Beaten"
Words Dispatched by First
"AirmaiI" in Balloon.
CAPT. BALDWIN NOW
NAVY CLERK HERE
Poignant Memories of Month in Ice
Pack Recalled by News
From Russia.
"Bafied but not beaten"


Closing pitiful plea for the neces-
stiles for a daring dash to the North
Pole % years ago. that message came
out of the frozen wastes of the Arctic
circle today, too late to help the in
trepid little band of Americans caught
in the ice packs, but not too late to re-
veal the romance of the first American
air mail.
For it was by the earliest American
air mail that the message vas sent, and
true to the latter day traditions of the
air mail. the message came through.
In little Office of the Navy Depart
ment, where he works now as clerk,
Capt. Evelyn Briggs Baldwin, who, with
his own hands, set free the balloon that
started the message on its long journey
to the civilized hauntS of men, today
told of the month of near-despair that
caused the message to go forth.
The message, in a copper cylinder
around which was a copper wired cork
ball, was found yesterday, according to
Associated Press report, fast in the ice
on the rocky shore of the northernmost
section of the island of Novaya Zem-
lyal, Russian isle in the Arctic Circle,
by Gregory Nikitin. who is on his way
to join a Soviet Arctic expedition in
Franz Joseph Land.
Poignant Memories Stirred.
Baldwin, intrepid explorer of 80 years
and more ago. found in the message
revived memories of an expedition
which he was not allowed to complete.
1t brought back poignantly memories
OF month spent in the Arctic pack
ice, where the little party of which he
was the leader, waited in vain for the
messages they sent by that first airmail
TO bring them the precious supplies they
needed to make their dash to the North
Pole and thereby gain everlasting fame
and glory.
The message found yesterday was
one of scores sent out by Capt. Baldwin
in June, 1902, while waiting for sup
pies to come to him about 500 miles
from the North Pole.
Capt. Baldwin was the leader of the
Baldwln-Zeigler expedition to the North
/ ole, started in the dawn of the twen-.
Jieth century, when the unfathomed
wonders OF the polar regions were mag
mes for the intrepid.
1t was of the frozen Summer days in
the polar region that Capt. Baldwin
spoke today explaining the message
Lllat was found yesterday.
We had just completed establishment
of the depots of food, fuel, sleds and
clothing along the line in Franz Joseph
land, which we would follow to the
Pole and return by. We had planted
all our supplies along the line, our
ship. the America, was light, our coal
supply was low, many of our dogs had
died and our sleds had been broken to
bits in the Tork of establishing the
depot. But We were all set for the dash
to the Pole if We could replenish our
supplies.
IAN that June we sent out dispatches
by that first airmail
Balloons Carefully Started.
1.-The messages went by balloons, the
bags of which were to 10 feet in diam
eter, made from hydrogen gas manu-
featured in the Arctic. TO the balloons,
on piano wire, were attached many of
these little cork balls, in which were
the cylinders containing our messages.
Watching for southerly and easterly
winds We set the balloons out from
the Ship to carry our message to some
one who would help us. Each of the
cork balls, containing message, was
equipped with releasing device which
would set it free to fall in the pack ice
or the open water, there to be carried
by the vagarieS of Arctic currents to
ClFulSdIlOu-WS nOpeQ.
The falling of each message so
1ightened the balloon that it could rise
to find high air currents that would
carry it farther toward the haunts of
men. =
Fifteen, in all, of these balloons
went out from the America, floating at
the edge of the ice pack From June
] to June Is we sent them, winds ever
faVoring their return to civilization.
We waited until limo C0--Ilnf1 all hone
OF our alrmail bringing the precious
stores we needed had vanished. Then
we pulled up anchor from the ice and
started back TO Norway, our starting
point
1T had taken 80 tons of coal to get
the America as far as we had gone.
We had only 65 tons left to get back
with. Our food stores were sufficient
aboard ship. both for men, dogs and the
five Siberian ponies, with which we
hoped TO make the dash to the Pole.
Leaving the farthermost northern
point we had reached on June 80, we
picked our way through the ice by way
of Cape Flora, conserving our precious
coal and burst joyfully into open water
when all but three tons Of our coal
had been consumed. Hosting our sails,
We then had an easy voyage to Hon
ningsVaag Norway, where we bought 10
tons of coal and made our way to
Ironso, Norway. whence we had started
Two weeks after our arrival at Tromso
our supply ship arrived in port with the
information that it could not get to us
through the pack ice.
No Answer Received.
I'VE heard nothing of our balloon
messages. None had been picked up
before our arrival in Norway August /.
and it was not until seven months later
that the first of the messages was
picked up by a Norwegian fishing ship
off the coast OF Greenland
Since then several of the messages
sent by our airmail have been found
and returned to me by way Of the Amer
lean consuls abroad"
Arrived at Norway, Capt. Baldwin
found a message from his hacker &c
some to New York for conference.
He had brought back from the Arctic
She first motion pictures taken in that
frozen area-taken with the aid of de-
vices for warming film and keeping il
pliable in below-zsro temperatures built
by Capt Baldwin.
The pictures made the Baldwin
Zeigler venture financial success, find
ing wide appreciation here and abroad
and the expeditions plans for polar
dash the next year were abandoned.
Capt Baldwin, who wrote all tn:
messages In his own hand and per-
sonally released all Is of the balloons
which carried them, finds the alrplanl