Democratic Sentinel, Volume 5, Number 1, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 11 February 1881 — EXPLORING IN THE FAR NORTH [ARTICLE]

EXPLORING IN THE FAR NORTH

The ice region of the North is full of marvelous grandeur and mystery. It is not only mysterious in itself, but likewise in much of its history, Known to us only as associated with everything barren, frigid and forbidden, it yet possesses eharms and even beauties that are specially its own. For nearly the whole year, its frozen waters and frozen land urgent phenomena startling almost beyond imagination. Turn the eye whither you will, in a space of some 1,500 miles diameter around the geographical polo, immense masses and fields of ice only are seen in every conceivable form, whether on the partly hidden land, or all but completely covered sea. On the one hand may be seen towering mountains of rock, soaring high in majestic grandeur, and encircled or divided from each other by mighty glaciers and fields of ice ; on the latter, there may -be presented a seemingly limitless level of solid ice varying from eight to fourteen feet in. thickness, and in parts thrown up into enormous ridges, sometimes forty feet high, and of irregular lengths, with huge ice-islands called bergs scatt?red about upon its surface. If it bo the Ojien season of summer, these bergs may bo seen floating about in stately splendor, or occasionally, when caught in currents and eddies, tearing along with ominous violence. If there be a storm, and the ocean has burst through aud broken up. the ice, the scene presented is a.very wild one, and the utmost dexterity is required on the part of the mariner to avert danger from the masses dashing against the vessel’s side. If it bo calm or moderate weather, the pictures nature puts before the eye are marvelous. If the sky is clear, thousands of fairy-like castles or crystal cities thrown into ruins appear to view. Refracted images of all imaginable forms dance before you. In the %ir may be seen, inverted, some distant object which in reality is far below the line of ordinary vision. Sometimes the sun does not look round but oval; or perhaps there may to be four suns, or at night four zAis, lighting up the icebergs. In wmter al.-.*, the whole of one part of the Leavens is often ibnmii.ated by the sp - uLI coruscation of the aurora b* reads. In summer, according to the mutuie, thtre :« no sum-et for weeks; al S ' urrng winter there is total darkness f_r i like period. Ibe c .-Id is intense, except occasionally. Even in autumn, thick ice will s-jmetimes form in one ni^it; and in winter or spring the register is generally from thirty to sixty deg. below zero. Still, if proper precaution be taken, even this extreme temperature is bearable. Now, it is through such a region as this that explorers have to make their way. How they do it is a story often told, yet always interesting. In the first place, their ships are more than ordinarily strengthened to encounter ice ; yet very often no common skill or human power is of any avail, and constant watchfulness of ice-movements is needed. In summer the ice breaks away from the eoast of not infrequently leaves a narrow tortuous passage round what is called Melville bay. It is, however, exceedingly dangerous, and ships are often detained here a long while. The exploring expedition of 1850 was fixed here for some weeks, and the vessel to which the writer belonged made only twelve miles in a fornight. Here, too, whaling-ships are often ciushed. The ice takes a “run” during gales and strong currents, and will sometimes actually break up and cover over a ship in a few minutes. The Hecle, Parry’s oki ship, was thus caught. In less than twenty minutes nothing was seen of her but the top of her mast-head aud the end of her jib-boom. An American whaler w T as also similarly served in twenty minutes ; and the Breadalbane, further on, w’as actually sliced by a run of ice, and sank out of sight when the pressure was removed. If the explorer has succeeded in passmg Melville bay, then Lancaster sound or Smith sound is entered. Seldom is this done till near the close of summer ; consequently, it is necessary to find some safe harbor in which tp winter. Some ships have had no such shelter, and have drifted about—as did the two ' American vessels in 1850 -51—all through the dark and bitter season. But supposing a winter harbor is found, then the ships are housed or covered in. and the crews properly attended to. What is next done in the way of wisely maintaining health by proper amusements, education and exercise, would take too long to tell. Enough to say that, except on the occasion of the last official polar expedition, very little mortality has occurred. Indeed, health in the Arctic regions is more to be depended upon than in tropical climes. During winter, all hands are employed in making preparation for spring traveling. Then, when March arrives, sledges are packed, officers and men appointed, and away these hardy explorers go, over ice and snow, along barren shores into unknown wastes, hundreds and hundreds of miles, without the slightest hesitation. Strange, too, how accurately they mark their way, and even prearrange where separate parties shall again meet in certain localities at first only fixed by geographical science and assumed configuration of land I But the better to understand this, let us try and picture a scene as it actually occurred. Upon the solid ice there, you might have seen a congregation of what look like human beings. Sledges and Esquimaux dogs are with them. Officers as well as sailors, numbering about 100, are dressed in uncouth garbs that make them look anything but civilized men. Furs are worn by those who can get them, and woolens lined with fur by others. Also masks for the nose, and goggles for*preserving the eyes. It is very cold, and every protection is needed to prevent frost-bite. No one is left by himself. Companionship is absolutely necessary, in order that the one may keep a lookout upon the other’s face; as, when frost attacks the nose and other exposed parts of the face, it is at first unfelt by the sufferer himself. His companion, as soon as he sees symptoms of this, takes up a handful of snow, and rubs the affected part hard for a few moments, and thus prevents any spread of the mischief. While this is going on in one place, others are busy trying to keep the dogs in order. These restive creatures, harnessed to the sledges, get entangled with each other, or every now ans then

run in between the men’s legs. Presently, however, all the party have arrived at the place appointed. There, the chief of the entire expedition carefully examines their several equipments, and addresses them in appropriate terms, pointing out what each has to do. The several sledges are named, and have flags -with certain mottoes selected by the officers attached to them. Many of those mottoes bear upon the subject of the search, and several of the flags are cherished on account of the fair hands at home—some sister, or some one still dearer—who lovingly made them. Every sledge has an officer, and from six to eight men. All the officers desire to go; but the post of honoris given first to the highest—even to the Captains of ships—then to the humblest in turn. And now all have received their orders, and been addressed as to their respective duties; and, after a few kind and sometimes tender partings between old comrades, the hardy explorers buckle to their work, and shortly separate, each band on its way to traverse hundreds of miles of frozen ocean or of bleak, inhospitable coast. Away they go I Over miles and miles of dreary wastes. Prying and seeking iHid examining wherever aught presents itself that w’ould seem to have been placed there by others than themselves.,. Weary, footsore, snow-blind, lame, weak, sirong again, often frozen nearly stiff, and battling with wind and sleet and icy particles that cut the face as though with a keen razor. Still they trudge on, through barren and bitherto-unknown places. Occasionally they break out into a song, and thus rouse themselves again, and perforce renew their flagging strength. The sledge, when loaded with provisions, tents, spare clothing, instruments, firearms, aud spirits of wine-for fuel, generally weighs 1,200 pounds, or say UM) pounds per man. This weight, then, the men nave to pull along over the ice, smooth or rough, and oitener among thrown-up ridges, as best they can. A belt round each man is then attached to the sledge, and thus should it happen, as is sometimes the case, that one of the party falls through a broken bit of ice, he is speedily pulled out again. In such cases some rapid exercise is necessary to prevent the serious consequences that might otherwise ensue. ‘ When dinner hour arrives, the party halts for a short time to eat the allowance previously made up for each person. Then they drink their small quantum of grog, a proceeding which is usually accomplished while running up and down the ice to keep up the circulation and escape being frost-bitten. The pork which has been cooked on board is almost always so hard that it breaks like biscuit, and the drinking utensils are usually covered with a non-conducting substance to prevent the cold from taking the skin off the lips. But night is the worst part of the time—that is, the sleeping period; for we should mention that sometimes the party travels by night and sleeps by day, on account of the greater advantage from the absence of glare, etc. When the day’s march of perhaps ten miles is ended, the tent is pitched on as comfortable bit of ice as can be found. This tent is generally fourteen feet long by eight feet broad and eight feet high. There is a flap at the bottom, made to pull outward and be covered with snow. The door is made of double curtains like a porch, to keep out the snow-drift, and afford shelter to the cook or lookout man. Generally, the tent has four - small holes in the top to permit the escape of steam and br ath, which otherwise condenses and falls in a shower of fine snow. The tent is so pitched as to have the door on the opposite side of the prevailing wind, lire cooking apparatus is fust within the porch. When the tent is put up and made secure a waterproof floorcloth is laid upon the ice, and upon this is placed another of canvas. The whole party, officers and all, then make themselves as comfortable as they can together. The provisions are served out, and, doffing their fur boots, they wrap their benumlied feet in moccasins or flannels, and, without undressing, get into bags made of stout blankets and about seven feet long, so as to cover head and all. Then, throwing themselves down on the covered floor, packed like herrings in a barrel, they seek in slumber a forgetfulness of their strange aud far from enviable position. What they endure may be gathered from the following quotations. In one official report it is stated that “ the men agreed in voting noses a nuisance in this country ; from their prominent position they are usually the first part frost-bit-ten ; also, whiskers and mustaches were sentenced as not only being useless but very inconvenient, the former catching the snow-drift, and one’s breath freezing on the latter forms an icicle not easily removed.” “April 30.—Near 1 o’clock a. m., lunched. At these low temperatures [lO to 20 degrees below zero] the fat of salt pork becomes hard and breaks like suet; and as the temperature falls below minus 25 degrees, our rum becomes thick. To drink out of a pannikin, without leaving the skin of one’s lips attached to it, requires considerable experience and caution. The bottles of water carried in the men’s pockets were generally frozen after an hour or two ; and after repeated trials it was found that inside the trousers waistband was the best place to carry them, and retain their contents in a fluid state.” Another officer has said that “he found the brandy congealed, though placed next the skin.” With reference to their sleeping accommodation, Capt. McClintock said : “ Lately our fur blankets and sleeping bags have been rapidly getting more filled with frost. The latter are quite wet when thawed at night. Nor have we been able to prevent their getting into this state; the greatest care has been taken to protect them from the snow ; the men’s clothes brushed before coming into the tent, and the tent and the floorcloth repeatedly brushed. It is chiefly caused by the condensation of vapor from our warm meals, and our breath, which falls in minute frozen particles. We have holes cut in the top of the tent to permit the escape of va nor, but the temperature inside is always low enough to condense it before it can ascend so high. The quantity of moisture from one’s breath is surprising ; the very small aperture we usually leave at the mouth of our bags to breathe through is coated with ice by the morning. Some of the men wear a loose over-all duck dress ; but even the inside of this is covered with frost after a hard day’s work in low temperatures aud requires to be well brushed off. “ As is usual for the first few days of a journey, the men suffer much from thirst Beside a pint of chocolate at breakfast and half a pint of tea at supEer, they have their water-bottles, which old two-thirds of a pint, filled three times a day; but several orthese have burst already, in consequence of the water freezing within them, although carried inside their outer garments.” Dr. Sdutherland says : “ How water could from freezing in the tents when the temperature was 57 deg. below freezing point is best known to those who made the attempt. A tin flask, half full, which the person who had the cooking for the day took into his blanketbag, and a gutta-percha flask holding two pints, which I took into my own blanket-bag, and kept on the outside of my vest within two folds -of woolen doth, became frozen (juite hard, and it was not without considerable difficulty that we got the ice thawed out afterward. * * * I took the one that belonged to my tent into my armpit for

two or three successive nights before the ice became all dissolved, the water being always removed as it was produced.” In the morning, when aroused by him whose turn it was to watch, all the misery of Arctic traveling is then experienced. Who is there that has not some idea of this from what is occasionally felt after a night’s watching or abstinence from rest ? The first dawn of morning seems even worse than the past midnight. Judge, then, what it must be there in a solitary tent on the icefloe, thousands of miles from home, and often hundreds of miles away from their other comrades I To awaken in such a scene is truly wretched. A pannikin of hot chocolate is generally the first thing given. Then comes the frightful agony of forcing the feet into boots often frozen hard as iron, while all the time the breath —despite the ventilators for it to escape—comes down in a shower of very fine snow. But at last they are again ready, and once more away they go across the wide floe, and, when near the land, along the lonely shore. Sometimes this sort of tent life is beguiled with songs and occasional music ; and the companionable pipe is invariably sought before sleep. Among other contrivances to aid the traveling parties in their search, was that of kites. In the expedition to which I was attached, we took out several, the gift of the late Mr. Benjamin Smith, whose son, Mr. Leigh Smith, has lately made such remarkable voyages and explorations by Spitsbergen and Franz Joseph Land. Another plan to give our missing friends some notice of the search for them, was that of using balloons. The gas being generated on board, a balloon would be sent up with hundreds of printed colored satin or paper slips attached to a slow match; and these were destined to fall over a certain space. The message printed on these slips certified where relief could lie found. But it is doubtful if ever one was seen, for, out of many thousands sent up, I believe none were ever come across again by any of our traveling parties. Where the sledges are pulled by dogs, the labor to the men is«of course much less, though it req lires a driver to manage these animals. Their performances, however, are very extraordinary. They will go many hundreds of miles in consecutive journeys, and only require ordinary attention. With a load of 1,000 pounds, a team of six dogs will go as fast as a man can walk. On the expedition in which the writer was engaged, searching parties made depots of provisions, wherever suitable, en route, so as to pick them up on return. But other depots were also formed by the ships’ trews for relief of a missing expedition. These depots were so built up as to prevent bears or other animals from getting at the stores, though occasionally slight havoc was done to some. It is astonishing the amount of provisions stowed away in various depots in the Arctic regions beyond where whalers or even Esquimaux go. In one place were deposited 11,(165 pounds of biscuit, 16,828 pounds of fletir, nearly 10,000 pounds of salt meats, over 10,000 pounds of preserved meats and soups; beside vast quantities of groceries, vegetables, fruits, pemmican, wines, spirits, tobacco, clothing, boots, etc. So far as the relieving of the missing expedition was concerned, the foregoing provisions, etc., were left in vain. Years afterward they were found untouched. These few notes of what is to be faced and endured by Arctic explorers may be of interest at a time when the recent American search expedition has drawn public attention once more to the subject of Arctic exploration.— Chambers' Journal.