Evening Star Newspaper, September 23, 1928, Page 6

- BYRD EXPEDITIO {T0 MAP ANTARGTIC] Plans to Survey South Polar Land and Study Weather Conditions. (Continued from First Page.) parts of it break off and drift away in the form of those vast tabular bergs which are peculiar to the South. Some of them are many miles long. It would be impossible to Winter on the ice bar: rier because of this danger. even if one were able to scale the cliff at more | than one point That spot is the Bay of W indentation in the ice barrier gets its name from the schools whales found X T this bay he shre rested scovered no move- stay, and the | er indicate that, 0 nd recedes at most points and is now receding. it is t at the Bay of Whales. the great ad-! S P 1 ible to dis- | ring it to the | o When we step ashore there we will |/ a mile so of | a gently rising slope | in the sun and nd as far as the eye can | the heights | see sea before us ice, ‘then or reacl of King and prom- ier. There is and the silence by the cries of gulls and s bask on the ice and the droll pen cock their heads to one side and walk up to the queer visitors— the explorers. A Few Paths Now Blazed. Before us will lie, wrapped in its mantle of ice and snow, 4.600.000 square miles of almost unknown ter- ritory, an area as large as the United States and Mexico. A few paths have been painfully blazed through this land by Scott and Shackleton along the western side of the ice barrier toward the Pole and by Amundsen due south to the Pole from the Bay of Whales. The edges of the Weddell Sea, Graham Land and a few other places on the circumference of this vast area have been charted, but the bitter cold. the treacherous storms that blow with a greater’ violence there than anywhere else in ithe world, and the complete ab- gence qf animal or plant life have pre- vented men from gaining any real knowledge of the continent. I have been asked many times why we are going to the Antarctic; what we can do or learn there which will justify the expense or danger of such 2n expedition. This is a hard question to answer, not because -there is any doubt in my own mind or in the minds of the scientists who are accompanying or advising me as to the value of the trip, but because the significance of data which may be obtained is far re- moved from popular knowledge and ex- perience. Why did Peary labor for years to reach the North Pole? Why did Nan- gen, Nordenskjold and Amundsen, Greely and Franklin and many other men spend years and some of them sacrifice life itself to penetrate the Arctic Sea? Why did Scott spend five years in the Antarctic and lay down his life there in one of the most noble and dramatic chapters of polar expedi- tion? Why did Shackleton return again to this desolate region to die finally from hardship and exhaustion? Why ¢id Mawson struggle for'a foothold on the. frozen threshold of Antarctica in gales that lasted all.year? Why do sclentists go again 4nd again to the frozen north and south and spend wedry months in seéking to reveal some zr ths secrets of these mysterious re- ions? Men's Thirst for' Knowledge. The human answer to these ques-. tions is simple. Men do these things because they are men; because in the unknown lies a ceaseless challenge to man’s curiosity, to his ever expanding fund of knowledge. While anything is to be learned of this. earth. of ours, of its form, its history, its strange forces, men will be found who will not rest until that knowledge is complete. That man himself advances, that life is bet- ter worth living now then it was in medieval times, that we have radio and moving pictures and flying machines, is due to this driving force in man which will not let him rest. Some men in- vent things which add to the comfort of-life, some delve into the secrets of nature in laboratories that we may have electric lights and better food and machines which heal our bodies. Some men explore unknown lands and seek to solve in them the riddles of nature, that we may have a more complete and nobler comprehension of our world. \ The mere fact that on this earth of ours is a region larger than our own coyntry of which nothing is &nown is ufficient motive for our trip. So lohg as that great space remains un- explored men will attempt to penetrata it.., America should have its share i thaf work. We cannot hope to com- plete it, although we hope to do more than has been done before because of our airplanes. There are many inter- esting speculations with regard to tha infqrjor, and geologists have long puz- 2zléd ‘over some of the contradictory fea- tuges of the known landscape. 1s_the Antarctic one continent or two Muge islands? It is known that the poldr“plateau rises to 10,000 feet in the interior and that there are two large mountain chains running inland from the Ross Sea and at either side of the ice barrier. But opposite the Ross Sea is anather indentation in the continent, the Weddell Sea, so similar in appear- andé to the Poss Sea, so apparently re- latgd to it in position that there has !n{ig been speculation as to whether or nat these two bodies of water did not at one time meet in a strait which has since: become overlaid with the ice of thg polar plateau. Nobody knows how | | { little wind is broken ol petrels. Se deep is the ice covering, and it is prob. eble that a careful survey from the ai- wotlt show that there once was a con- negtion between the two Antarctic seas d that the eontinent of ice was two large islands before the Ice Age. 5 Mountains to Be Explored. | we shal! also be T¢ is probable w ..o one of the anie 10 determine W meuntei ranges is actally a continu- | stion of ‘he Andean Cordillera. The interior (¢ King Edward VII Land, or yather that part of the interior to the southeast € that land. has never been sepn, and 1° we are able to penetrate t some dis! air we shall learn cefinitely the of the mountain: or perhaps discover an undulating plaix That is one o) the greatest gegoraph jcal problems o the Antarctic. There are maiv other things to dn,} of which flying o the South Pole is far from being the most important. The Purpose of the flight to the Pole is not only to reach the Pole itself but to sur- vey. as much of the polar plateau as possible, something which Amundsen and Scott were unable to do because of the jtations of their method of ®ratel, My greatest desire in going to | ‘Zhe Pole is to fly beyond it, if possible, and ascertain the extent of the plateau and its physical chacacteristics. It is probable that it extena® for many miles in an undulating plait. but nobody knows. It has never beett approached except from the Ross Sea sector. All of this country over which we fly will be mapped with the aid of aerial cameras, specially constructed instru- ments which will record a wide tervi- tory on each side of our routes, the size depending on the height we are able 'Al attain over many elevations of the landscape. From these photographs, UNKNOWN ANTARCTIC REGION BYRD SEEKS TO'SURVEY Ein: vfime EBWARD, T - T f‘fi!clncfifl” P 1 i i i e AMUNDSEN ROUTE e SHACKLETON ROUTE SCOTT ROUTE maps will be drawn which for the first time will give nearly accurate details of the country. Although mountain ranges have been glimpsed at a dis- tance by expeditions in the Antarctic, their actual position and detail have never been accurately ascertained. There are many . problems for the physicist in auroral observations, earth radiation, radio-activity of snow and ice, and glaciology. There are meteor-~ ological studies to be made, perhaps as important a task as anything else, for the Antarctic cold and storms affect the climate of half the world. There are studies in magnetism and spectro- photography, and the”causes of that little understood phenomenon, the au- rora australis. It is believed that it is the result of an electronic bombard- ment from the sun under which certain atoms are broken up, but that also is speculation. Many Experiments to Be Made. Fossils are to be sought and rock specimens will be obtained for careful examination, There is much. valuable experimental radio work to be under- taker. There is almost no limit to the scientific work which may be done in the Antarctic, for, despite the great accomplishments of ~ Scott, Mawson, Amundsen, Shackleton and others, the surface has been merely scratched. Our geographical work will be con- trolled almost entirely by meteorological conditions. Airplanes have never been used in the Antarctic and any one who uses them there must begin his work MAYER Seventh St. i Lifetime Furniture Store Will Be Closed All Day Tomorrow (Monday, Sept. 24th) On Account of Holiday . L with somewhat the feeling that he is going into danger. The reports of Antaretic blizzards would cause the most adventurous spirit to become cau- tious, It is obvious that flying should not be a slap-dash proceeding in a re- glon where winds rise from dead calm to 40 miles an hour in two minutes, and out of a sky tMat had been clea carrying blinding clouds of snow through which it would be impossible to fly safely. It can be understood why we are taking four plan®. We shall be extremely fortunate if we bring them all back Our testing and early flying in lay- ing down bases will be comparatively simple, We shall have an opportunity to test our skis under loads, for the weather at the Bay of Whales is un- usually uniform and. free from storms. This is due to the unusual formation of the ice barrier, which is a vast tri- angle, 600 miles long at its sea base and running inland about 400 miles. It is believed that this offers a zone of com- parative calm because of the peculiar nature of the storms which roll down off the high polar plateau, the largest plateau of similar height in the world. Prof, Hobbs of Michigan believes that the strong winds on the edge of the continent are caused by the gravita- tional force of descending currents of cold air, but that on the barrier these winds are chécked by their own pressure within a few miles of the interior edge of the barrfer. Whatever the reason for this phenomenon, it seems certain & CO.” Bet. D and E THE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, Map shows the icy Antarctic conti- nent and its surroundings waters. So far only one side of the continent has been invaded. The trails of Amundsen, Scott and Shackleton are shown. Photo that on the barrier we shall have an unusually good base for our planes. But once we pass beyond this region in flight we enter meteorological condi- tions that are uncertain and dangerous. The flight to the Pole will indicate what I mean. It seems reasonable to assume that from the edge of the barrier, where our main base will be located, up to the glacier over which Amundsen made his way ‘at the edge of the plateau the flying will be in fairly smooth air and with little danger of a sudden storm. ‘This is fortunate, for it will give us an opportunity to climb slowly with our heavy load to an altitude of 12,000 feet or more, which we need to cross the ‘mountains and the plateau, We may, of course, take off from a base at the foot of the plateau, but this must be decided by conditions as we find them. The moment we reach the mountains we enter a storm area. Winds howl down the passes in the mountains from the plateau, bearing dense clouds of snow through which it will be difficult to fly.. The air is turbulent and the velocity: of the wind such-that we shall literally have to fight our way through it. This will tax the plane and the pilots to the utmost, unless it is pos- sible to climb above. the storm, and I very much doubt.that we will be able to avoid all of it. Just how far this storm area may stretch it is .impossible to tell, and 1t is barely possible that we may reach the mountains in one of | those strange periods of calm which are { almost as inexplicable as the storms # themselves. ! But once through the mountains and | well into the plateau it is probanle that we shall encounter merely mou- "erate winds and little snowfall, which | should make this part of our journe:; favorable for exploration of a part ot the plateau and for close examination and for photographing of the moun- tains seen by Amundsen, to which he gave the name of the Queen Maude Range. Whether we shall be able to alight at the Pole and make observa- tions on the ground is problematical. 1 should like very mueh to do so and possibly prolong .our stay there a day or two, but this will have to depend en- tirely on the surface we find and th2 ability of the plane to rise with a load from an _elevation of more than 10,000 feet, which as every aviator knows, is very difficult even under the most favorable conditions. We are still held by the present limitations of aircraft. Flight Over Unknown Land. A flight to the east and southeast over the mountains that are supposed to exist to the east of the barrier will be a very different®and much more difficult trip. There we will be over ACT Low As Why wait until Winter comes. SAFE. NO CASH PAYMENT 3 Years to Pay P sy 5-Year Written Guarantee | landings with a load very dangerous. Remarkable Heating Offer— HOT WATER HEAT Ac's We Use the American Radiator Co. First Quality Products . . . Think of It! the cold weather, then we'll be rushed. Phone us now about. making an installation, while we can give it the proper attention. water heating plants are FULLY GUARANTEED, EFFICIENT AND EVERYTHING NEEDED FOR A 6-ROOM HOUSE. buy. Pay as sums to suit*YOU. PHONE MAIN 3067, NOW. Dz C., SEPTEMBER FLORIDIANS JOKED | DURING HURRICANE Woman- Gives Graphic De- scriotion of Devastating Storm. Floridians take their hurricanes phil- | osophically. | While furniture, lumber, roofs, cocoa- nuts and debris of every' description went flying past their places of tempo- | rary shelter during the height of the blow, the brave residents of Lake | Worfh, in the heart of the stricken area, kept up their own spirits and the | mornle of their companions by joking at their misfortunes and experiences. A letter just received by The Star from Liza B. Moncure of Lake Worth | paints a graphic picture of the excite- ment that prevailed about her. “House Still Standing.” The letter follows: “I am writing this from the exact center of hurricaned Florida (Lake Worth) and I have jotted down a few high lights of the last 48 hours. “While my home is still standing, it threatened otherwise, and we were compeled to leave at the height of the first storm. We tried to get to an office building across the rtreet, but were thrown flat on our faces and found a non-stop flight impossible. We dodged, dashed, ducked, darted and literally dived our way to what seemed a haven, and it was until the return storm from the south. It proved a nopular place. Refugees gathered from all points. “One poor creature remarked .as he surveyed his dripping feet that he felt absolutely unknown land, flying directly into the path from which come the pressure waves that control to a large extent the storms of Antarctica. * The origin and cause of these wave is unknown, so we shall have the con- diton of flying over an unknown area, never before seen by man, toward the threat of storms which we can neither anticipate nor avoid. In these side- flights, . hawever, may .lie the greatest successes of the expedition, as they wiil result in the mapping of a vast territory Hitherto unknown, and so they will be worth all the risk. i They will not be long: flights, of course, and will be started from inland bases, 50 that it will be possible to dash out and back again as a precaution Against being caught in a storm. Every flight will be over a predeter- maned route which will be held 10 rigidly. so that in the event of a forced landing the crew may be rescued by another plane. It can readily be seen that a sudden storm with snow would blind the pilot, so that it would be im- possible to keep, going, and if he should be caught in a_storm there would he only two possible maneuvers—either to land at once and wait until it was over, which would be safest, or try to beat the storm back to the base. That | might be possible, as the pressure waves move at a velocity of only 40 miles an hour, and, fortunately, directly toward our main base. It is for this reason that the Bay of Whales offers, of all known parts of the Antarctic, the best base from which to dircct operations by air, It can readily be seen that flying in the Antarctic is very different from Arctic flying. There are few, storms in the Arcilc during the Spring months, but there is the constant danger of fog. }n the Antarctic, on the other hand, here is liftle fog but constant danger from storms. There is no other part of the world wheye the weather is so un- eertain, or };‘mr, ‘so certain " in its constant menace. In the Arctic, nlso,( it is possible to fly at a low elevation | above sea level, which makes it possible | to utilize the full efficiency of theplane. but in the Antarctic nearly all ht must be at a height of many thousgnds | of feet above sea level, which limits the | capacity of the plane and makes forced ‘There is the satlsfaction of having | a solid surface instead of floating ice | on which to come down; but Antarctic | cold is much more severe than that of the Arctic in the Summer months. In | the Antarctic it never gets above freez- | ing. In flying, of course, lower tem- peratures would be encountered. We hope to carry out most of ourl extensive program, and believe that we shall be able to do so. The personnel | of the expedition is all that could be | asked; no better men ever went into | the Antarctic. I have every confidence | in them and am proud to be at their | head. Our equipment is of the besl,] both aeronautic and scientific. Nothing which foresight could provide has been | overlooked. And so we push off in the hope that we shall be able to accom- | plish all that is expected of us, and that our expedition will carry a step | further the glorious tradition of achieve ment which has already been made in the Antarctic. (Copyright. 1028, by New York Times Co.) i 325 to Please You! Fully Guaranteed Prices are soon to advance with Our hot- Nothing "else to you earn, in convenient 23, 1928—PART 1. quite safe now and would be all right he could just get a shoe shine. A girl rushed up with a pair of long and large trousers on and said it was all she could grab as she jumped out of bed when the house went down. One man told his wife that as she had long wanted to ownt a home here, she might take advantage of this golden oppor- tunity to grab one as it went by. “All this as death faced us and roofs, some in sections and some almost in- tact, went flying by, and screen doors and windows and hats and auto tops, and even park benches filled the air and street Coconuts rained down and how any of our skulls escaped I will never know. One man proved almost the last straw for our morale as he dashed insanely up and down the street screaming to know if any one had seen his mother. Another upset us equally, but in different fashion, by appearing minus his trousers. Various addresses where he could be paraled were called ‘out to him as he galloped past. Passed Night in Store. “When we were driven from this shelter we took refuge in a stationery store and began the last worst half of this dreadful night. Of course, there were no lights in town, but our host had candles and we tried to compose our- selves. 1 was impressed with the way each of these poor things tried to make some one else comfortable. One young mother with a tiny baby went to pieees when plastering began raining down on us, but we finally got her under a table with her baby on a pillow and though the theater next door went down and the front of our refuge tore loose and plastering and debris poured all around us, when I left she was sleeping like the baby in her arms. “Next morning I crept out at dawn and was confronted with a scene of desolation such as I hope I may never see again. Rain still fell in torrents, but at one totally demolished home a woman was scratching in the wreckage of what_had once been the kitchen, and as I passed she turned with a heavenly ‘smile lighting her face down which tears were streaming, and said, ‘I found my potatoes.’ Another house had just unfolded. All the walls were down and on # bed sat a little beautifully dressed doll. I went on—a house with upper floors entirely gone, wreckage everywhere and a bed hanging over the edge, but back where a wall had been stood a little vanity dresser and it held a liftle bud vase; upright and unbroken, a storm freak. Everywhere were topless cars, One was on a vacant lot, a total wreck, top, tires, seats and even hood gone, but on it hung a bright new Al Smith sign and, showing that hurricanes play no poli- tics, another sign had Al Smith turned upside down and later in the day, this was chalked OXK. and left upside down! “Monday it poured all day and except for the swapping of experiences on street: corners and the effort to get food, nothing was done, but Tuesday we woke to the sound of hammers, saws and whistling. When -the rain would start up the whistling would stop. but the work wouldn't and it is inspiring to see the unguenchable, indomitable, unbeatable American spirit of these brave. Floridians. They are marvelous and after;all, in spite of hurricanes, mosquitoes, real estate booms and other ills, the State is marvelous. While liv- ing through a storm of this intensity is a soul-trying experience in one way, in another it is an uplifting one. for it brings out the best that is in us and it leaves us very humble.” Maj. Wilson to Be Retired. Maj. Harry F. Wilson, Army Finance Department, has been relieved from duty at the Army War College, this eity and ordered to his home to await re- tirement at the convenience of the Gov- ernment. He is from New Jersey and began his military service in 1892, reaching the grade of mafjor in July, 1920. - During the World War he served as mnljur in the Quartermaster Corps. al And at Our Baltimore Store PORTO RIGO ON WAY 10 REHABILITATION Island Prepared to Carry On After Week of Desperate Unordered Effort. By the Assoclated Press. SAN JUAN, Porto Rico, September 22 —Porto Rico, after a week of desperate effort following upon the hurricane, to- night was prepared to go forward with rehabilitation with the satisfaction of two tasks accomplished. The storm wreckage had been cleared away sufficiently to permit survey of the entire island and the movement of sup- plies. Relief, pouring in from the out- side to augment local resources, had succored the stricken people in their most helpless moment. The third task, that of putting this relief to work in a definite program in- stead of in the uncoordinated way made necessary by the first shock of the catastrophe, is to be undertaken at a meeting of representatives of all towns on Monday, called by Chairman Andres Candia of the Porto Rican Red Cross. Employment is Needed. A fourth task, that of finding liveli- hood for the poor, has been surveyed. but definite proposals are yet to be formulated. Health authorities have moved quick- ly against the menace of disease follow- ing the hurricane. The United States Quarantine Hospital and that of the School of Tropical Medicine today were converted into emergency hospitals for the San Juan district, providing 200 beds for cases of measles, mumps and pneumonia. ‘Those injured in the storm had been crowded previously by necessity into private hospitals along with patients suffering from contagious diseases, the Red Cross has given P. N. Ortiz, health commissioner, 50 tents for use as hos- pitals wherever needed in the interior to lessen overcrowding. Profiteers Forced Out. The malarial control board has sent quantities of quinine to regions where malaria is epidemic and is concentrat- ing upon oiling and draining areas where the storm created new dangerous mosquito-breeding waters. ‘The health department h: put profiteers out of business by keeping five food price inspectors continuously in the fleld. Mily supplies are becom- ing normal. without excessive charges. The de- partment is giving close attention to the city of Aguidilla where a typhoid epidemic had started, even before the storm. The people epparently are curtailing their amusements as a measure of economy. Two moving picture thea- ters in. the San Juan district report poor attendance, although the price of admission is low. Slump May Be Delayed. J. R. McKay, assistant Federal Trade commissioner of Porto Rico, said today that the business slump which is ex- pected to be one of the natural results of the hurricane, may be deferred for several months. Reconstruction of buildings and roads and other salvage work, he said, will give employment to a large number of men for a considerable time. Necessary cultivation in the cane flelds and rec- lamation work on the fruit and coffee farms already are making a heavy de- mand on agricultural labor. Retail business probably will remain good throughout this period. Later. Ice is being dfstributed | business houses will fare badly anq thai many of them will dmpm . McKay estimates that the islands’ hur- ricane insurance amounted to $20.000.« Of this amount about $5.000.000 was taken out on coffee plantations, but only $300,000 was on the coffee crop, th= balance being on the trees. Most of this insurance was placed with a London company and settlement must be de- layed until an adjustor arrives from England. Relief agencies have found ne short. age of building supplies here except m roofing materials, cement and nails. Towner Praises People. Gov. Horace M. Towner today praised the conduct of the Porto Rican people under the trying conditions which fol« lowed upon the hurricane. “There has been no food looting any- where at any time.” he said. “There has been no disorder anywhere. The conduct of the people has been re- markable under the most trying con- ditions. They are helping themselves where they can and are helping the afflicted all over the island. The police have been in entire control in all mu- nicipalities. “The National Guard was placed under the orders of the local police the morning after the storm, not to quell looters, but to prevent them, and to protect the lives and property of the stricken. The United States regiment is also helping in the work of relicf and is available for the preservation o order whenever needed. g FLORIDA RELIEF WORK ADVANCES AS RED TAPE IS CUT ___(Continued from First Page.) that he had recommended conference with expert drainage engineers. He offered to support any feasible plan. Meanwhile, steps toward rehabilita- | tion of the coastal sections devastated | by hurricane were accelerated with sur- veys of property losses planned as initial efforts in the restoration program. Howard W. Selby, chairman of the Palm Beach County Red Cross com- mittee, raised his estimate of property damage in the county from $30,000.000 to $50,000,000 and A. L. Schafer, State director of disaster relief for the Na- tional Red Cross, announced his belicf that the death list would total 1,000. Orher relief and military officials esti- | mated death at upward of 1,500. 8,782 Persons Fed. Schafer said more than 8,782 persons were fed yesterday by the Red Cross and that 4,460 persons were in con- centration centers, with 130 injured ref- ugess in hospitals. Trucks loaded with supplies were rushed toward the stricken sectors dur- ing the day, hauling their burdens to the water line, where the transfer was being mace to boats. Howard Selby, chairman of the West Palm Beach County Chapter of the Red Cross, announced today that he estimated the loss {rom the storm in Palm Beach County alone would rca $50.000,000. This is a $20,000,000 in- crease over previous estimates of the Red Cross. Schafer said that all railroads east of the Mississippi have just ordeicc free transportation for refugees up !~ October 1. He sald that George E. Ferrell of the University of Floridd was being brought in by the Red Cross to advise on the citrus crop. The list of dead from the stricken arca that is buried in the two ceme- teries here stood at 666 today. Plans have been made, however, to bring no more bodies here, but to transport them by train from the outlying sections ot the Everglades in this county to Okee- how it is feared that the small obee and then to Sebrin Trim, Ritzy, New Collegiate Oxfords for School Girls 6.50 Low heeled— in quality and fa high school and low priced—but high shion! Just right for college girls. Many women like shoes of this type for all- around wear. Featured In: Genuine BROW Tan TOR. ALLIGA- or black calf, or Willow Calf with lizard- like trim. Wing tip or plain —medium, square toes. breezy styl faithful weathers Other Low to service Heel rounded or full All notable for and sure of in all e “Debs”—$4.95 $8.50 7th & K 3212—14th “Women’s Shop”—1207 F