Evening star., 1949-08-31
Antarctica Expedition
Cancellation Brings
Flood Of Rumors
Administration Denies
Move to Punish Senator
Byrd Through Brother

Move to Punish Senator
Byrd Through Brother
By David Laurence
Something of a mystery seems
to have developed out Of the can
. collation. of the United States
Navy expedition to Antarctica.
The whole expedition was to
have cost the Navy about $780,
900, and there already has been
spent about $1,000,000.
The ships which were to have
been used have to be kept in oper-
alton somewhere in the normal
course, so that the total extra ex-
pense for a four-month visit to
the Antarctic would have been rel
atively small.
The objective. of such an expedi-
ton. however, is Of considerable
Importance. Thus. there is some
reason to believe that uranium
deposits are to be found in the
vast continent in and around the
South Pole-a land area estimat-
ed to be as large as the United
States and Canada together.
Conflicting Claims Set Up.
Conflicting claims to the area
have been set up by various ma
tions, including Soviet Russia.
But the United States has done
more exploration there than any
other country. Hitherto in world
history the first explorers who
landed in an area have laid claim
to the surrounding regions in the
name of their own country. Rear
Admiral Richard Byrd has made
the main expeditions to the South
Pole area and has mapped huge
part of the Antarctic continent
and claimed it in behalf OF the
United States.
While the next expedition,
which was to have started in No
vember of this year, was to have
been accompanied by Admiral
Byrd, it was in no sense his own
expedition. 1t was an official Navy
affair. Reports nevertheless have
been spread recently that the
Truman administration, desiring
to punish Senator Byrd, has
thwarted the ambition of his
brother to make a final expedition
into the area he knows so well.
This is hotly denied in admins
tration quarters. In fact. it is said
that Secretary of Defense johnson
recently assured Senator Byrd In
person that he had nothing to do
with the decision. Undersecre-
tary Kimball of the Navy Depart
ment has taken full responsibility
for the action in cancelling the ex-
pedition and he has insisted that
nobody else had anything to do
with that step.
One rumor is that the whole
action grew out of the desire OF
overzealous subordinates to do
something they thought would be
pleasing to President Truman.
Another explanation heard is
that, at a time when the Depart
ment of Defense was ordering the
dismissal of $4,000 civilians, 1t
had to give an impression of being
economical in every detail. This
hardly seems persuasive, for the
amount to be spent is far smaller
than might be expended, for in
stance, in a goodwill tour or any
of the other normal or routine
operations of the Navy in which
the same kind of ships might be
involved.
Still Another Report.
Still another report is that the
Navy expedition planned to use an
aircraft carrier for the exploration
and that it was felt this might
lead to too much publicity for the
Navy's carrier-aircraft operations
and that at this time it might be
considered indelicate to seem to
overemphasize carrier aircraft.
None of these explanations
sounds convincing. They sound
more like excuses or even guesses
as to what was behind the can
collation.. Clearly the armed serv-
ices need every bit of experience
they can possibly get concerning
conditions that exist in the Polar
areas, especially since it Is as
sumed that, in the event OF war
with Russia, the armed services
would be operating in weather
very much the same as it is to be
found in and around the South
Pole.
Finally, it is difficult to under
stand why the expedition was can
celed when it is realized that the
Army and the Air Force as well as
the Navy were to have partlcl-
pated in the operations with scien-
tific personnel from each OF the
three services.
Some explanation for the post
ponement would normally have
been made, but in these times the
action taken becomes a mystery
which merely leads to surmises
and gossip that give the impress
sion that petty considerations gov
ern important decisions of defense
policy inside the armed services.
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