The New York Herald Newspaper, June 8, 1874, Page 3

LG eo fenger-12th Dec.1873_ 1,900 fathoms 9ahy!.875 fathoms —_aeee -—- NEW YORK HERALD, MONDAY, JUNE 8, 1874.—TRIPLE SHEET. From ‘th aap s Kerguelen or ))) Desolation L, £ Cm Enderby Land ge Indications off Land Pack Ice 1,675 fathoms 6 1,276 fathoms TOT emia i 3 | Cape 0100p Bitte NTARCTIC REGION. TasMama on\ Yan DIEMEN'S) Fe Ll'!,March Y ane Ae fi kee aw = on lo Track of Adelie Ld. 60 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 a’ Urville!84] 189 Eng'd by Fisk & See, N.Y, WILKES’ CONTINENT. The Antarctic Land of the American |, Explorer Evaporated. THE CHALLENGEB’S REFUTATION. A General Review of Explora- tion in the South Seas. Compared with the Arctic regions the Antarctic ave incited little attention; partly because of vheir remoteness from the centres of civilization, and partly from there being no great leading mo- tive, such ag the Northwest Passage, to stimulate enterprise. The Southern seas have possessed, since the time of Columbus, an interest only as a route to the Indies; but this interest did not ex- tend beyond Cape Horn ana the Cape of Good Hope, Gradually, as the world became unfolded, stray isiands were stumbled upon here and there, and, a ship being driven a long way to the south- ‘ward of Cape Horn, found the South Orkney Islands, and great numbers of seals were dis- covered thereon. The whale fishery grew to be a profitable branch of adventurous business, and it ‘was s00n added to theseal fishery. As investiga- tions were pushed year by year, it was discovered that the desolate islands bathed by the cold waters of the Antarctic were almost everywhere alive with seals. The jarg- est of the species came to be known asseaeclephants and sea lions, and others were discovered which produced a fine fur that nas lately come to be of great valne and tobe highly prizea for its softness and beauty. So great did the interest become, that the . BRITISH GOVERNMENT resolved upon an exploration, which had thns far been left to the whale and seal fishers themselves. Thus Captain Cook became the first officially au- thorized describer of the riches of the Antarctic re- gions. Thus far, when an island, rich with seals or sea elephants and sea lions, was ‘discovered, the secret was carefully kept; and often, as is so well told in Cooper’s “Sea Lions,” one ship which had Teturned well laden was followed and watched afterwards, and many were the tricks and expe- dients to shake off an unweicome companion. Cook circumnavigated the world without coming upon any extenstve bodies of land in the South, though a great deal of ice was seen, and at one time, in latitude 62 aeg,, the ico was of extraordinary height and = grandeur, and it came to be known as ‘Cook's icy barrier.” Cook made his furthest southing in February, 1774, when he reached latitude 71 deg. Gouth, 40 deg. to the westward of Cape Horn; but there was nothing but ice there. Then came Bel- Hinghausen, in 1820, who struck the parallel of 70 eg. in the South Atlantic; then Weddeli, in 1823, ‘who touched the same ice barrier in tatitude 73 deg. Briacoe, in 1832, found Graham's Land and plenty of ice. In 1833 Kempt found land in latitude 66 deg. south, longitude 60 deg, west. ‘Then there came a long intervene of inaction, when almost at the same moment three great nations—the United States, Great Britain and France—resolved to send expeditions for discovery around the world, ana 4n the course of thelr voyages they all went as near the South Pole as they could get. These ex- peditions were commanded respectively, by Cap. tain Charies Wilkes, Sir James Ross and Damont @Urville, ali famous in the history of maritime aa. venture, wv’Urville mado tho least reputation by his daring work; Wilkes made the longest voyage and excited the largest snare of public attention the announcement of the discovery by OS pm ADIATHS COBBAN ANd Baad renoneg, nearer the South Pole than any one had gone before or has gone since, claiming the discovery of land as far south aa latitude 70 deg., where ice and not land interrupted his further progress, and where a great volcano more than 12,000 feet high belched forth fire and flame in the midst of boundless tee. This volcano he named Mount Erebus, while a second mountain, supposed to be an extinct volcano, was named the Terror; the two names being those of his two ships, which afterwards completed their wonder- fal career of peril in every sea and clime by carry- ing the memorable expedition of Sir Jonn Frank- lin to the Arctic Seas, there to be crushed to pieces by the thick-ribbed ice and lost with every soul on board. There 1s & wonderful romance connected With these two ships and a grand tragedy—south to latitude 79 deg., north to 77 deg.—they may be said to have compassed almost the entire earth. THE UNEXPLORED AREA, Taking the different points which have been marked by these different expeditions, some meet- ing land and all meeting tee, and connecting them all with a continuous line, we have an area around the South Pole of about 6,000,000 wholly unex- plored, or, in order to make the statement more clear, an area almost equal to that of all North America. DISCOVERIES. Concerning the discovery of Graham Land by Biscoe In 1832, in latitude 63 deg. south, longitude 60 deg. east of Enderly Land, by the same navigator in 1831, in latitude 66 deg. south, longitude 60 deg. west of Kempt; land in latitude 65 deg. south, longitude 60 deg. west of Ross’ Soath Victoria in 1841, ranging from 70 deg. to 78 deg. south, and in longitude 170 deg. west,there has never been any se- rious dispute; but much has been said ana written, and much argument has been raised respecting the line of land lying nearly on the Antartic circle, and marked on all the newest charts as stretching from about longitude 95 deg. to 165 deg. west, and which was the name of Wilkes’ Antartic Continent, and along which we find such names as these marked With extreme accuracy to detatls—Ringold Knoll, Peacock Bay, Disappointment Bay, high land, covered with snow; Porpoise Bay, Budd's High Land, Repulse Bay and Termination Land, this latter being in the immediate region of Cook's icy barrier of 1773, Wilkes lays great stress npon this discovery in his narration, and replies 10 Ross, who, before the narrative was published, had heard of Wilkes’ claim to the discovery of an Antarctic continent, and disputed its existence in his own published account. The subject was at the time the occasion of a good deai of scrimonious discussion, and Wilkes’ final reply in his narrative ts as follows, prefacing it with observing that he hopes this part of the labors of the expedition will prove interest- ing to all of his countrymen who possess a feeling of national pride:— “The credit of these discoveries,” he observe: “has been claimed on the part of one foreign ni won, and thelr extent, nay actual existence, called in question by another; both having rival expeditions, one at the same time, the other the year succeeding (referring to the French expedi- tion of D’Urville, of 1840, and the English expedt- tion of Ross, of 1841.) Hach of these nations, with what intent I shall not stop to inquire, has seemed disposed to rob us or the nonor, by underrratin, the importance of their own researches, and would restrict the Antarctic land to the small parte they respectively saw; however willing I might be, in a private capacity, to avoid ‘contesting their state- ments and let trath make its own way, I feel it due to the honor of ourflag to make a proper assertion of the priority of the claim of the Amert- can expedition and of the greater extent of its discoveries and researches. “That land does exist within the Antarctic circle 1s now confirmed by the united testimony of bota French and English navigators. D’Urville, the cel- ebrated French navigator, within a few days after land was seen by the three vessels of our squad- dron, reports that his boats landed on 4 small point of rocks at the biace, (as 1 suppose) which Appeared accessible to us in Piner’s Bay, whence the Vincennes was driven by a violent gale, This he calied Olarte Land, and testifies to his belief of the existence of a vast tract of land, Where our view of it has lett no doubt of its existence, Ross, on the other hand, penetrated to the latitude of 79 deg. 8 in the succeeding year, coasted for soma Wskanca conne: Along a jolly couniy with our Antarctic content and establisnes beyond all cavil the correctness of our assertion that we have discovered, not a range of detached isiands, but a vast Antarctic continent. How far Captain Ross was guided in his search by our previous discoveries will best appear by reference to the chart, with a full account of the proceed- joge of the squadron, which I sent to him, and which I have inserted tn appendix 24 and atlas. Although Ihave never received any acknowledg- ment Of their receipt from him personally yet I have heard of their having reacned his hands a few months prior to bis Antarctic cruise. Of this, however, I do not complain, and feel only the jus- tiflable desire to maintain the truth in relation to aclaim that ts indisputable. The following nar- rative must, I feel satisfied, leave no doubt in any unprejudiced mind of the correctness of the assertion that we have discovered a vast conti- nent; bat 1 would ask in advance, Who was there prior to 1840, ettuer in this country or in Europe, that had the least idea that any large body of lan existed to the south of New Holland, and who is there that now doubts the fact, whether he admits it to be a vast continent or comtends that it is only @ collection of islands ? “Examine all the maps and charts published up ;to that time, and upon them will any traces of. such land be jound?y There will not, and for the very best of reasons—none was known or even suspected to exist. We ourselves antici- pated no such discovery; the indications of it were received with doubt and hesitation. I my- self did not venture to record in my private jour- nal the certainty of land until three days aiter those best acquainted with its appearance in these high latitudes were assured of the fact: and finally, to remove all posstbility of doubt and to prove conclusively that there was no deceptionsin the case, views of the same land were taken trom the vessels in three different positions, with the bearings of its peaks and*promontories, by whose intersection their position is nearly as well estab- lished as the peaks of any of the islands we sur- veyed from the sea, “Ail doubt in relation to the reality of our dis- covery gradually wore away, and towards the close of the cruise of the Vincennes along the icy barrier the mountains of the Antarctic Continent became familiar and of daily appearance, inso- much that the log book, which is gaardedly silent as to the time and date of its being first observed, now speaks throughout of ‘the land.’ ROSS DISPUTED THR BXISTENCE of the Antarctic continent altogether, and D’Urville claimed the original discovery of an outlying por- rion of it, nearly midway between Ross’ discovery and the “Termination Land’ of Wiikes, to which he gave the names of CVlarie Land and Adelia Land, After the discussion over these discovertes was ended very little was said or heard in relation to the matter until the VOYAGE OF THE CHALLENGER again opened the subject by the letter of Lieu- tenant Hynes, which we published on Tuesday last. Meanwhile the English charts nave steadily ignored the existence of Wilkes’ Continent by never publishing anything more than simply his “Termination Land” upon them. In this we can perceive something of national jealousy. All ex- plorers are natural rivals, and the nations they represent are not slow to stand by their country- men, oftentimes to the great confaston of geography, and in this instance, while the Eng- lish charts ignore the Antarctic Continent of Wiukes altogether, the American charts display it consptcuously. The Challenger is on & voyage of discovery around the world. Her object is mainly tomake deep sea soundings, which, in certain latitudes, will.have a conspicuous bearing upon the laying of future telegraphic cables. The deep gea currents, with their temperature and the animal life at great depths, are also considered in their investigations, and many important results, quite in antagonism with Previous theories, have been already publisned. The Challenger left the Cape of Good Hope Devem- ber 17, 1878, en rowte for Kerguelen Land (the Desolation Island of Captain Cook), which lies on the Antarctio Circle, in longitude 70 deg. east, and where one of the parties of the United States steamer Swatara, which sails to-day, is to be landed for the observation of the coming tranait of Venus. Passing on the way the Crozet group (where another party 1s to be landed from the Swatara), they reached Kerguelen Land and then stood southward and castward to look alter Wilkes’ Consinent. Kerguelen Land is de- scribed as having (it was then the Antarctic sum. mer) much the same cumate as the winter of Eng- ARNG, ChQ WORARGKALUTS FARGUAR JTOUD 38 deg 10 LAY AUS MARS DXOREOM aUAte 58 deg. There were no trees. Vegetation was very scant, chiefly consisting of moss, but sea fowl were abundant, as were also seals and sea elephants. Our Swatara scientific party, who will be competied to spend at least six months on the island, are not likely to have the most pieas- ant time of it on this bleak desert rock, In the vicinity there are about thousand small islands not laid down on the charts. The first ice was sighted from the Challenger on the 1ith February, in latitude 61 deg. longitude 80 deg. east, where soundings were obtained in 1,200 fathoms. An iceberg was seen 217 feet high close by. During the next few days they sailed through loose ice, surrounded by numerous icebergs, which were flat topped. On the 14th of February they were stopped by the pack ice, in latitude 65 deg. 42 min., longitude 79 deg. 49 min. east, Following the line of this pack tce they finally crossed the Antartic Circle on the 16th of February, in longitude 78 deg. cast. Beyond the Antartic Circle they penetrated only a few miles, reaching within 1,400 miles of the South Pole and 120 miles to the southward of Wilkes’ Termination Land, though some 420 miles to the westward of it, and at least twice that far to the southward of the position assigned by Cook to his famous impenetrable ice barrier of 1773, They saw @ great deal of ice and eighty-seven icebergs were in view at one time. Sounding, they obtained 1,675 fathoms, or nearly two miles, ‘rhere was no appearance of glaciers, from which icebergs are necessarily formed, and therefore there could | be no land within reach of vision, as glaciers are always of mountain origin. The temperature of the air was 22 deg. with a good deal of snow; the temperature of the water was 27 deg. They were sarrounded not only by icebergs. but dozens of whales were spouting about them all the time. They also saw shoals of grampuses. The sea was perfectly open to navigation to the southwest on the 16th of February, with nothing seriously to impede navigation. After the 16th they stood to the eastward, and, recrossing the Antarctic Circie on the 8d of February, were in latitude 64 deg. 15 min., longitudé 04 deg. 47 min. east, about 150 miles south of Cook’s ice barrier and on the very spot of Wilkes’ Termination Land. Here they ob- tained soundings in 1,00 fathoms, or nearly a mile anda half, The sky was clear, and no land was 10 be seen. Kighty-eight icebergs were counted at onetime. While floating thus upon the site of the most conspicuous part of Wilkes’ Antarctic Conti- nent they threw overboard their dredge to escertain if they could haul up any part of it, as it had certainly gone down something like a mile and a half be- neath the waves if it had indeed ever risen above them. Their further progress to the eastward was | arrested by heavy pack tce, and a@ gale springing up, accompanied by” thick weather, they were driven northward, and passing their last iceberg in latitude 63 deg., finaily reached Melbourne, Australia, after a voyage trom the Cape of about 8,000 miles, on the 17th of March, being just three months on this very remarkable passage. They had many narrow escapes from the icebergs, Al- together, their experience among the ice must be Tegarded as most remarkable, being, as they were, fifteen days within the region regarded by Cook as impenetrable in consequence of the ice, and for half that time within a region since the time of Cook regarded as solid land with mountain peaks of perpetual snow, The period of the year when Wilkes visited this same region was nearly the same as that of the Challenger, The latter, it will be observed, came from the west to the east, while Wiikes sailed from the cast to the west. The first land which he claimed to have seen was in about latitude 64 deg., longitude 165 deg. east, aad from that point to the westward land was constantly being re- ported ungil he had finally reached this Termina- tion Lana over which the Challenger has just satied, On the 14th of February he was in latitude 65 deg., longitude 106 deg. east, when he says:— At daylight we again made sail for the land, beating tn for it till eleven A. M., when we found mnea@nbis La 1D, (Ay Seqnence of the great number of icebergs). I then judged it was seven or eight miles distant, The day was remarkably clear and the land very distinct. By measurement we made the ex- vent of coast of the Antarctic continent which was then in sight seventy-five miles, and by approximate measurement: 3,000 feet high. It was entirely covered with snow; on running in we passed several icebergs, greatly discolored with earth, and, finding we could not approach the shore any nearer, I determined to land on the largest ice island that seemed accessi- ble to make dip, intensity and vartation observa- tions. On coming up with it, about one and @ half miles rom where the barrier had stopped us, 1 hove the ship to, lowered the boats and for- tunately effected a landing. We jound embedded in it in places boulders, stone, gravel, sand and mud or clay; the largest specimens were of red sandstone and basalt, Many specimens were ob- tained, and it was amusing to see the eagerness and desire of all hands to possess them- selves of a piece of the Antarctic continent. These pieces were in great demand during the remain- der of the cruise. In the centre of this iceberg was found a pond of most delicious water, over which was @ scum of ice about ten tuches thick. We obtained from It about 600 gallons. We re- mained on this iceberg several hours and the men amused themselves to their hearts’ content slid- ing. ‘The pond was three feet deep, extendin: over an area of an acre, and contained suficten' water for half @ dozen lanl es ° * * There was no doubt that this iceberg been deteched from the land, which was about eight miles distant. Accompanying this detailed description Captain Wilkes publishes tn his narrative A PICTURE REPRESENTING THE ICEBERG on which the party landed, and where they all seem to be very jolly with the ice barrier—beyond, and in distance, the round topped, snow-clad mountains of the Antartic continent, From this point Wilkes pursued his way to the westward, and on the 15th of February was in 64 deg, 6 min. south and longitude 104 deg. east, nearly on the same parallel, and 9 deg. to the eastward of the position of the Challenger, when she started out of the ice in her fruitless search for Wilkes’ Land. As in the case of the Challenger, numerous whales were seen, and also plenty of birds, principally penguins, which seemed greatly enjoying them- selves on the ice. On the 17th he was in longitude 97 deg. 37 min. east, in nearly the same latitude as before, and now they discovered the ice barrier, instead of trending east and west as before, to run north and south. Wilkes was very anxious to pursue his way further to the west- ward, in order to reach Enderby’s Land, believing that the continent he thought he had discovered extended that far at least. He was now, as he reports, 200 miles further south than where Cook had found the ice barrter in 1773, and within @ few miles of the position of the Challenger on the 28d, 24th and 25th of the’same month of the pres- ent year. The same natural conditions were ob- served in both cases—namerous icebergs (Wilkes counted upwards of 100 at one time, without the Aid of a giass)—a sea open enough for navigation, plenty of whales and birds. Some of the icebergs, or ice islands as he sometimes called them, were several miles long. Remarking upon their mag- nificenve, he si We enjoyed this beautifal sight with the more pleasure, for we had become nk to them, and knew from experience that it was possibile to navigate through them without accident. In the midst of all this there came a splendid exnibitton of the aurora australis, Itexceeded anything of the kind that I had heretofore witnessed, Its activity was inconceivable, darting from the zenith to the horizon in the most brilliant coruscating proceeding from @ point in the zenith, fas) the most brilliant pencilings of light, tke electric fuid in vacuo and reappeared ish. Forming themselves into one umbrella or fan shut up, again emerging across the sky with the rapidity of light, the: showed all the prismatic colors at once or in quick succession, From this point the expedition stood northward and eastward, following the line of the ice barrier, Land, it was thought, lay to the west and south, but they could not get in with it through the ice, This was tho Termination Land which the Uhal- lenger could not fina, After encountering dangers of the most appalling character the expedition finally reached Australia, from whence it had started, RESULTS, Now the question arises as to whether Wilkes sawJand ox only josbergh No landwg was as aay time effected, and except some pebbles and sand Picked up on an iceberg there was nothing td show positively that there was land there at ally for the icebergs could not be formed without thera being land, nor could boulders, pebbles and land be found floating om tice im the open sea unless that ice had been formed on tha land. For all glaciers are of mountain origin and are formed of snow, and the tceberg 1s simply @ fragment broken from the glaciers. When in iceberg bouliers and sand are formed, they ard known among those familiar with the subject ta have been carried down by mountain torrente au: deposited on the glaciers, or to have been hurle down from adjacent cl! as we so often see im the Alps. The origin of an iceberg is simply this, as shown by the researches of Hayes, Rink a others in the Arctic regions, The snow falls upoi the mountain tops, the summer sun ary thaws it, the winter frosts freeze it, an fone am are fo tee fea ise Year by yeat ry cen 8 goes on un there is 8 vast accumnotations But ice not like rock, @ solid unyielding mass, but 1s in @ meagre ductile, and, in consequence, the mountain ice slowly fows down the mountain sides. Were this not the case the mountams would climb up to an Ing height Rendu estimates the accumulation of ice on the ba at a thickness of fifty-eight inches annually, which would, but for its steady, down elevate Mont Blanc 4,000 feet in 1,000 y giacier ts, in fact, the river of the ‘id regions ol the Arctic and’ Antarctic regions and of loity mountains, which, like the Al id Andes, vv Treason of their at elevation, e a climate similar to that of the poles. The river, it is true, is a hard and solid body of crystal ice, but = & e draws down to the sea ie precipita- tions from the air ich = come im the fo of snow, like the slopes leading to tha Amazon, Missouri and other great streams draim the prectpitations from the air which come in the form of rain. The glacier moves from seven fourteen inches daily, according to the declivit; and the temperature, but it ts very shady, and irree sistible as a torrent tumbling irom the mountain. Many of the Greenland glaciers are miles in width and chousands of feet in thickness, In the Alpg and other mountains of temperate and tropical climes the glacier comes down to a lower an: warmer level, and the ena ig then melted of, the end of a candie would be if held in the door of an open stove. Not so, however, the Arctic ani Antarctic glaciers, for there being in th regions mo lower line warm enough tor the melting process, even in midsummer, thee glaciers must necessarily find its way into the se and following still the bed of Uhe sea, which Is bu a continuation of the same inclined plain, At the, bed of the valley it finally washes many miles out beyond the original shore line, forming @ soli wall and front of ice, which shortly sin deeper and deeper in the sea until finally the equilibrium is disturbed and a creek is forme which, beginning at the bottom, liberates a which may be anywhere from afew fathoms toy several miles in diameter, and behold we have an) {oeberg on an island, as Wilkes sometimes calls ita to distinguish it irom the level plains or fields floes which are formed upon the surface of the sea This being the case, It is clear that while there. may and very likely is not @ continent in the And tarctic regions, there is certainly land, and that,, too, of considerable extent. It may not be ag large as North america, but it fs not a small ple of jand that will discharge ey 2 glacial action such vast quantities of ice tn the form of ice! as Wilkes, Ross, Cook and others describe. It seems almost certain that this South Polar land, Ww y er may pg ee heensed or arg that the form of peciors, “ discharged on every side ih and, the sea being clogged with icebergs, hag im 1! created what all Antarctic navi call the barrier, which is not only of suc! ititade to lead the imagination to re; them as mout tains, but the effect of mirage, common in bot and South, and the absence of points comparison and calculation to strengthen the illus sion. ‘There can be no donbt that the non-existence @ considerable portion of Wilkes’ continent bi Sseadition by the researches of the Challe! e: tion, just as another portion was Fac ously shown to be of very doubtful e: b: J wi claimed va it, at y Sir james = Ross, have sailed right over the lenger has done in the present instance the Termination. This, however, does not by m disprove the existence of land bet these extreme points of tne claimed log is no less a log with two pieces sawed ends, althougn {te dimensions may be vi curtailed and as a log not be worth 80 much to owner; but it is poor policy to burn the ce: Ptece up in spite and wantonness because the are gone. Let us save what we can of the tie Continent less which can only be performe: by sending ont forthwith nt expedit to see what Ross and ti nger have left of our much boast ware. This honor of the country and the late gali@at aud cuterprisiag