On October 13, 1900, the news was brought to the ship that the hopes of discovering new land were likely to be realised. A party who had been far out to the west had seen in the distance what appeared to be land at a place where none was shown on the maps. Five days later, with a picked band, Captain Sverdrup was hastening to the place indicated. As the winter was near at hand, they could not do more than verify the news. In the distance they saw what appeared to be new land, while near at hand they found traces of large herds of oxen and reindeer. The larder was in need of being replenished, and as it was impossible to proceed with the survey of the newly discovered territory before the spring, the members of the party secured as much beef and venison as they could for winter supply. By the time they returned to the ship they had enough fresh meat, not only for themselves but also for the dogs, to last until the following spring.
On April 8, 1901, Sverdrup and his picked companions set out again to explore the new territory. After pushing on as far as the outer limit of the coast, they came upon what appeared to be a large bay. The land they had descried lay on the far side of it, and for the moment they feared that, after all, it was only a portion of the old, though making the area of that much larger than had hitherto been believed. To prove or disprove their fears they commenced to cross the ice in the bay. As they proceeded, the land, at the head of the bay, was seen to suddenly open out and reveal a sound running between two islands. It was new land which lay before them, and with great jubilation they named the channel Eureka Sound and the island after the King of Norway. The position was 78° 50' N. lat. and 84° W. long.
Close examination of this island led to the discovery of remains of extensive Eskimo settlements, showing that at one time there had been a considerable population where now not a single Eskimo was to be found. The presence of whale bones among the ruins of the huts told of a still further change that had occurred, for whales are now quite extinct in that part, and have been so for a long period.
CHAPTER XII ITALY CLAIMS THE RECORD
Norwegian Aid—A Northerly Station—Premature Enthusiasm—Cold Comfort—An Arctic Greeting—A Hasty Landing—Disorganised Plans—Homeless Dogs—Making Fresh Plans—The Leader Frost-bitten—The Start for the Pole—Driven Back by Cold—A Second Start—First Detachment Lost—Anxiety for the Second—A Struggle for Life—Third Detachment Overdue—Fears of Disaster—Safe at Last—Italy sets the Record.
For the first time in the history of their country, the Italians entered the field of Arctic exploration in the year 1899, when an expedition under the command of the Duke of Abruzzi sailed in the Stella Polare, and by means of dogs and sledges carried the Italian flag to higher latitudes than any other explorers had succeeded in reaching. The record up to the time of this expedition was that set by Nansen, who, with his companion Johansen, attained to 86° 14' N. The Italians reached 86° 34' N., or twenty geographical miles further north than the Norwegians.
The scheme of operations under which the Abruzzi expedition set out was to sail as far north as possible along some coast line, establish winter quarters, and, in the spring, to travel by sledges towards the Pole. The expedition was composed of Italians and Norwegians, the men of the latter race being taken to navigate the ship, the leader wisely recognising that inasmuch as Italians were not used to navigation in ice-bound seas, it would be hazardous to risk the safety of the whole expedition in the early stages of the journey by manning the vessel with them. The sledge party who attained the highest latitude were all Italians, but the Norwegians shared the honours won, for without their assistance the sledge party would have had little chance of penetrating as far to the north as it did. In fairness, also, to all other men who have striven so hard to unveil the secrets of the Arctic, it must be admitted that the Italian success was based entirely on the knowledge gained by other nations. The scheme of a dash by sledges was the scheme that Peary had conceived and announced; the main depôt of the Italians was that which had already been established at Cape Flora by the Jackson-Harmsworth expedition; the route taken by the sledge party was in the vicinity of the route Nansen and Johansen followed; the ship was Norwegian built and Norwegian manned; the men who set out for the dash to the Pole had, therefore, all the hard work done for them. Yet with all these advantages they only reached twenty miles further, an achievement not to be compared with that of Nansen and Johansen.
The expedition practically commenced its journey from Archangel, whence good progress was made to Cape Flora, a food depôt being established in the huts of the Jackson-Harmsworth party, which were found still standing intact. After an ineffectual attempt to pass through Nightingale Sound, the Stella Polare got out of the ice on August 7, and succeeded in reaching 82° 4' N. latitude in open water. This was to the north of Prinz Rudolf Island.