The Story of Geographical Discovery: How the World Became Known

by Joseph Jacobs

Only Smith Sound promised to lead north of the 80th parallel. This had been discovered as early as 1616 by Baffin, whose farthest north was only exceeded by forty miles, in 1852, by Inglefield in the Isabel, one of the ships despatched in search of Franklin. He was followed up by Kane in the Advance, fitted out in 1853 by the munificence of two American citizens, Grinnell and Peabody. Kane worked his way right through Smith Sound and Robeson Channel into the sea named after him. For two years he continued investigating Grinnell Land and the adjacent shores of Greenland. Subsequent investigations by Hayes in 1860, and Hall ten years later, kept alive the interest in Smith Sound and its neighbourhood; and in 1873 three ships were despatched under Captain (afterwards Sir George) Nares, who nearly completed the survey of Grinnell Land, and one of his lieutenants, Pelham Aldrich, succeeded in reaching 82.48° N. About the same time, an Austrian expedition under Payer and Weyprecht explored the highest known land, much to the east, named by them Franz Josef Land, after the Austrian Emperor.

NORTH POLAR REGION—EASTERN HALF.

Simultaneously interest in the northern regions was aroused by the successful exploit of the north-east passage by Professor (afterwards Baron) Nordenskiold, who had made seven or eight voyages in Arctic regions between 1858 and 1870. He first established the possibility of passing from Norway to the mouth of the Yenesei in the summer, making two journeys in 1875-76. These have since been followed up for commercial purposes by Captain Wiggins, who has frequently passed from England to the mouth of the Yenesei in a merchant vessel. As Siberia develops there can be little doubt that this route will become of increasing commercial importance. Professor Nordenskiold, however, encouraged by his easy passage to the Yenesei, determined to try to get round into Behring Strait from that point, and in 1878 he started in the Vega, accompanied by the Lena, and a collier to supply them with coal. On the 19th August they passed Cape Chelyuskin, the most northerly point of the Old World. From here the Lena appropriately turned its course to the mouth of its namesake, while the Vega proceeded on her course, reaching on the 12th September Cape North, within 120 miles of Behring Strait; this cape Cook had reached from the east in 1778. Unfortunately the ice became packed so closely that they could not proceed farther, and they had to remain in this tantalising condition for no less than ten months. On the 18th July 1879 the ice broke up, and two days later the Vega rounded East Cape with flying colours, saluting the easternmost coast of Asia in honour of the completion of the north-east passage. Baron Nordenskiold has since enjoyed a well-earned leisure from his arduous labours in the north by studying and publishing the history of early cartography, on which he has issued two valuable atlases, containing fac-similes of the maps and charts of the Middle Ages.

General interest thus re-aroused in Arctic exploration brought about a united effort of all the civilised nations to investigate the conditions of the Polar regions. An international Polar Conference was held at Hamburg in 1879, at which it was determined to surround the North Pole for the years 1882-83 by stations of scientific observation, intended to study the conditions of the Polar Ocean. No less than fifteen expeditions were sent forth; some to the Antarctic regions, but most of them round the North Pole. Their object was more to subserve the interest of physical geography than to promote the interest of geographical discovery; but one of the expeditions, that of the United States under Lieutenant A. W. Greely, again took up the study of Smith Sound and its outlets, and one of his men, Lieutenant Lockwood, succeeded in reaching 83.24° N., within 450 miles of the Pole, and up to that time the farthest north reached by any human being. The Greely expedition also succeeded in showing that Greenland was not so much ice-capped as ice-surrounded.

Hitherto the universal method by which discoveries had been made in the Polar regions was to establish a base at which sufficient food was cached, then to push in any required direction as far as possible, leaving successive caches to be returned to when provisions fell short on the forward journey. But in 1888, Dr. Fridjof Nansen determined on a bolder method of investigating the interior of Greenland. He was deposited upon the east coast, where there were no inhabitants, and started to cross Greenland, his life depending upon the success of his journey, since he left no reserves in the rear and it would be useless to return. He succeeded brilliantly in his attempt, and his exploit was followed up by two successive attempts of Lieutenant Peary in 1892-95, who succeeded in crossing Greenland at much higher latitude even than Nansen.

CLIMBING THE NORTH POLE

The success of his bold plan encouraged Dr. Nansen to attempt an even bolder one. He had become convinced, from the investigations conducted by the international Polar observations of 1882-83, that there was a continuous drift of the ice across the Arctic Ocean from the north-east shore of Siberia. He was confirmed in this opinion, by the fact that debris from the Jeannette, a ship abandoned in 1881 off the Siberian coast, drifted across to the east coast of Greenland by 1884. He had a vessel built for him, the now-renowned Fram, especially intended to resist the pressure of the ice. Hitherto it had been the chief aim of Arctic explorations to avoid besetment, and to try and creep round the land shores. Dr. Nansen was convinced that he could best attain his ends by boldly disregarding these canons and trusting to the drift of the ice to carry him near to the Pole. He reckoned that the drift would take some three years, and provisioned the Fram for five. The results of his venturous voyage confirmed in almost every particular his remarkable plan, though it was much scouted in many quarters when first announced. The drift of the ice carried him across the Polar Sea within the three years he had fixed upon for the probable duration of his journey; but finding that the drift would not carry him far enough north, he left the Fram with a companion, and advanced straight towards the Pole, reaching in April 1895 farthest north, 86.14°, within nearly 200 miles of the Pole. On his return journey he was lucky enough to come across Mr. F. Jackson, who in the Windward had established himself in 1894 in Franz Josef Land. The rencontre of the two intrepid explorers forms an apt parallel of the celebrated encounter of Stanley and Livingstone, amidst entirely opposite conditions of climate.

Nansen's voyage is for the present the final achievement of Arctic exploration, but his Greenland method of deserting his base has been followed by Andrée, who in the autumn of 1897 started in a balloon for the Pole, provisioned for a long stay in the Arctic regions. Nothing has been heard of him for the last twelve months, but after the example of Dr. Nansen there is no reason to fear just at present for his safety, and the present year may possibly see his return after a successful carrying out of one of the great aims of geographical discovery. It is curious that the attention of the world should be at the present moment directed to the Arctic regions for the two most opposite motives that can be named, lust for gold and the thirst for knowledge and honour.