XX. EXPEDITIONS OF 1902
During the spring of 1902, several expeditions were at work in the Northern regions, each hoping to be the first to reach the pole.
One of the most important was the Ziegler-Baldwin expedition, equipped by Mr. William Ziegler of New York, and commanded by Mr. Evelyn Briggs Baldwin. This was the largest and probably the best equipped expedition sent out. Baldwin had two ships, four hundred Eskimo dogs, and fifteen Siberian ponies. His flagship, theAmerica, was a stoutly built whaler and carried a cargo of six hundred tons. His other ship, theFridtjof, carried the scientific instruments.
Through the generosity of Mr. Ziegler, practically perfect scientific apparatus accompanied the expedition, and Mr. Baldwin was assisted by experts in geographical charting, geology, botany, and meteorology. Both theAmericaand theFridtjofreached Franz Josef land, but very little significant work was accomplished. Instead of wintering in the North as had been planned, Mr. Baldwin returned to Norway. Mr. Ziegler, however, has not faltered in his determination to find the pole, and he has sent out another expedition for that purpose which is now in the North.
A Russian expedition excited widespread interest. Admiral Marakoff constructed an ice-breaking steamship, andwith it expected to force his way through the ice to the pole. The steamer is called theErmack, and is a very powerful ship, able to stand fifteen times the strain which may safely be brought to bear upon the average steel ship. In breaking the ice, theErmackrises upon it and crushes it down. The forward propeller sucks away the water underneath the ice, and thus reduces the resistance.
Admiral Marakoff believed that the ice near the pole was thin, and that his ship would be able to steam directly to that long-sought-for goal. But in battling against the wide and heavy ice floes of the Arctic ocean, theErmackproved a failure. It is said, however, that she made five successful trips between Nova Zembla and Franz Josef land.
Another expedition, the progress of which was watched with interest, was that of the Duke of Abruzzi, who is cousin to the king of Italy. He started for the North Pole in theStella Polare, in 1899. In the spring of 1900, he succeeded in arriving within 239.15 statute miles of the pole. This record surpassed Nansen’s by twenty-three miles, and is, therefore, the best yet made.
It is said that Abruzzi and Nansen will join in command of an expedition which will start from Franz Josef land. Both men have done valuable work in the icy North, and important results are expected from their united efforts.
Captain Bernier, a French Canadian, planned to enter the Arctic by way of Bering strait. He expected then to travel over the route taken by theJeannette. Bernier hoped to be carried near the pole by the ice drift. When he had reached a suitable place, he intended to leave his ship and proceed to the pole by means of dog sledges, reindeer sledges, and boats. The newly invented systemof wireless telegraphy was to be used by Captain Bernier, as a means of communication with his ship.
Captain Otto Sverdrup, in command of theFram, was already in the North in 1902. Sverdrup won his spurs, you will remember, while on the famous Nansen expedition. He was sent out by the Norwegian government to explore the northern coast of Greenland, and to connect Peary’s work on the east coast with that of a German expedition on the west coast.
Robert Stein’s expedition had not the proper equipment to seek the pole, but was designed for the exploration of Ellesmere land. Stein returned without accomplishing much valuable work.
A novel plan has been announced by Dr. Anschutz Kampfe. Dr. Kampfe proposes to build a submarine boat, and proceed to the pole beneath the ice.
For more than three hundred years, men have struggled to reach the North Pole. They have braved bitter winds and faced starvation and death, in order to wrest the secrets of nature from the great white North.
Since Sir John Franklin’s first trip to the Arctic regions, interest in the Frozen North has never flagged. Very grave doubts as to the wisdom of spending so large sums of money and of risking so many human lives have arisen in the minds of those who have followed the story of suffering and death. It is natural in this century, when men are counting the cost of every project, to ask wherein lies the advantage of exploring the polar country, since the work is in every case so difficult, so dangerous, and in many cases fatal. But we may feel sure that the work will never cease until every part of the Frozen North is known.
Beyond the additions to our store of meteorologicalknowledge, and of botanical and geological facts, there has been a decided addition to the world’s wealth by Arctic exploration: not in money, but in character; not in conquest, but in heroism; not in material success, but in those experiences which make men strong and enduring. The world is already richer in mines and money than it is in men of courage and in high acts of duty and bravery. Thrilling deeds, glorious perseverance, and unwearied patience are the noblest fruits of Arctic exploration.