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Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la m^thode. 1 2 3 4 5 6 fR U '^O i ITlli [ii I?' W^'^ ..,J imu mm r 1*1 I? I in" " '■'■■■i5ll34 ill m Mm m imi- im H:ai:ffe|.(|., m liil i^ifi-ii '^m m EARLY MIGRATIONS. ARCTIC DRIFT ANJ> Ocean Current COAST OF GREENLAND Of Relics from the American Arctic Steamer "Jeannette," By CHARLES WOLOOTT BROOKS SAN trR*t»CfSCO, CAXtF^mA tJeo. Spmidlns * Co.. Printw.!! EARLY MIGRATIONS. AECTIC DEIFT AND Ocean Currents ILLUSTRATED BY THE DISCOVERY ON AN ICE-FLOE OFF THE COAST OF GREENLAND Of Relics from the American Arctic Steamer "Jeannette." DV CHARLES WOLCOTT BROOKS Member of the Academy. Rfad before the California Academy of Sfieiices September 1st, 1S84. SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA: Geo. SpttuKUnK & Co., Printers. 1884. Arctic Drift and Ocean Currents. ii,iA:sTitATi;n nv the dihcoveky on an ice-floe (jff the COAST OF GREEXLAND Of Relics from the Amerlccin Arctic Steamer "Jearinette." SflEXTIFIC IMI'ORTAXCK OF THE SUBJECT. It is ii now uiul ini[)ort!iiit fact, wovtliy of ciireful record by pliysicists of all nations, that icc-fioes from ]iortli of Herald Island, opjtosite Bering Strait, dividing Asia from America, are drifted to tlu; south-western i)oint of Greenland in the Atlantic. Tin; deep and constant in- terest manifested by this Acaileniy in the American Arc- tic explorations of the Jtioniettc, Avhich sailed from our port on July (Stli, 187'.), under command of Lieut. Georgo W. De Long, U. S. N., and in the fate of her gallant crew, is well known to all scientific bodies throughout the world. Humboldt, the father of modern science, that great and good man, when off the coast of Peru, first discovered the stream that bears his name. Both Humboldt and Sir John Hersehel pronounced ocean circulation the greatest i)roblem of terrestrial physics. Ocean currents, with inland water courses, have largely dded and often directed early migra- tions. Isothermal lines are not strictly coincident with parallels of latitude. Along the Atlantic seaboard of North America, a warm stream Hows four miles an hour, which Di. Croll telLs us, conveys as much heat to northern Europe, as the entire Arctic regions obtain from the sun. Dr. Wm. B. Carpenter recently informed the British Association that oceanic currents flow northward into the Arctic, because cold water there sinks, and constantly stimulates the water from warmer regions to advance and till its place. bG74i8 ARCTIC DRIIT AND OCEAN CURRENTS. Dr. Wm. H. Dill, U. S. C. S., attrihntos tlioir presouco to the iuHow of warm frosli wator, (lisoliargud by tlio largo number of rivers tlowiii},' northward, ami emptying in the vicinity of the polar basin. Atmosplierio pre.s.sui-e, revealed by recent barometric tests, affords data for another plausible theory. Dr. A. Goiko has brought out discoveries in geology which merit consideration in the study of this subject. Earth is an oblate spheroid Hattened 26 ,",,^0 miles at the polos; but re- cent geodetic measurements show it to be an unsymmetrical form, whose ecpiatorial circumference is an ellipse instead of a circle. Its greatest eipiatorial diameter at sea-level, where the vertices touch the surface in longitude 1-1 22' E. and 165 37' W., is nearly two miles longer than at right angles to it. How far inetpralities of earth's form may dis- turb the ecpiilibrium of its surface waters, and attract them by force of gravitation or some other power yet imdemon- strated, is an incpiiiy i)ertiuent to this subjcict. Arcs of meridians have been measured, to determine with great accuracy the actual length of each separate degree of latitude from the Ecpiator to the North Pole. Tliese meas- urements show that the measureil length of a degree in- creases with the latitude, and that a degree at the polo, where earth's surface is Hattened one IJOOth jiart of its dia- meter, IS now 3,662 feet, (0.6!).! of a mile) longer than at the increasing curvature of the protuberant Ecpiator. Earth's form being now unsymmetrical, tends to keep its surface waters in a state of unrest. Many forces are continually la- boring by different methods, to attain for these, a state near- er to equilibrium, thereby giving impulse to oceanic currents. Mathew F. Maury, by an original system of classification, adopted in the U. S, wind and current charts, did much to attract a critical exploration of maritime currents. There may be a partial truth in all the many theories advanced. The voyages of the British ships Liyhtuhyj, Pore, pine and Challenyer, United States' ships Dolphin, Tascarora, Fish Hmvk, and Swedish steamer Viya, have given us reliable data for scientific study; but a carefully preserved record of AKCTIC DIUFT AND OCKAN CUHHENTS. i the drift of wiiifs honic dirolocton ice-floes and along ocean cnrnsnts, Iiiigely supjtlcincnts one ndd of kn(j\vl«'dg(}. The British discov(>ry slii|» /lrs<,hi/r, one of Sir Edward Behdier's expedition, was uhuiidoncd Aug. 20, IH'ti, when frozen in, not far from Beediy Island, in lat. 74 40' N., Ion. DO 45' W., and was picked up without a i)erson onboard by Ca|)tain I'uddington, of the American wliah'-ship (I'lonjc Ilciir;/, Sept. 11th, 18r)5, in lat. (54 40' N., Ion. 01 80' W., off Cumber- land Sound, on the west coast of Batrin's Hay, just south of Davis Strait. Slu; was brought to tlu; Unitcnl States, iindby Congress present(>d to England. In 381 days she drifted eastward in the ice-floe fully 1,100 miles, averaging about three miles each day. Another remarkable expeiicnct! of Arctic drift was that of a party of 19 persons, including m(m, women and children, lauded on an ice-floe of fiv(^ miles in circumference, with boats, stores and ])rovisions from the U. S. S. Polaris, Charles F. Hall, Commander, on October loth, 1872, in lat. 77 35' N., not far from lattleton Island, when it was thought that vesscd was about to siidc. Upon this drifting floe they built snow huts in which ihoy lived and kept their records and provisions. They were rescued by the barkentine 7V//res,s, Capt. Bartlett," April 30th, 1873, in lat. 53 30' N., which vessel was engaged in sealing. In the light of information now received, it appears quite certain that had the JcdiiiifKc proved stron,^ enough to hold together, she would have sailed safely into New York early in the Spring of 1884, if not before. In proof of this opin- ion, the following facts are now reported as causing great surprise and much attentive study among scientific men in the United States. now THE NEWS WAR TIEOEIVED. On Friday. August 15th, 1884, the American bark Fluov'iue, Capt. Alexander Wilson, arrived at Philadelphia, — days from Ovigtut, the port of shipment for the cryolite mines, situated a fcnv miles north of Julians-haab, the prin- cipal place and seat of the local government of au extensive 6 ARCTIC DRIFT ANU OCEAN CURRHNT9. district on tho sotitliorn txtremity of Grocnland. I( id A iimritiinc station sitimttMl llOniilos N. W. of Cape FarowftlJ, tlio cxtronic Sdiitliciii pdiiit of (rn'oiilaiid. Just licforc Hiiiliii^' fniiii h ij,'tiit, in .Inlv, l8iS4, iiii otKcial dis]){vt('li, uddi'csscd to tin' Danisji Confinlate in Now York, was liandt'd liini l»j the Diiiiisli ("oloniai (lovornor of Jn- lianH-lmal), wlio wont at onco to lvi},'tnt and piv»> the nowH to ('a|)t. Wilson, rpon the an'ivai of the FliKtr'nw at ^Miila- doil)liia, (!ai)t. Wilson pifinipf ly forwarded tlic di«ymt( li to tJM! Dunisli Consul, wlio Ivindly furniHlies tli<' following offi- cial translation, dated [official ('ommimcation ok thi: danism covbrnment.J "The Colony Ji'LiANSHAAH, IN Sorrii (iRekniand, ) "Juno 2:kl, 1884. f " To the Ddiils/i ('o)isiihifr ill Xfir }'(*/•/.•.• "I hor(d)y take the liherty to re(|ucst tho consnlato to inform tlH> editors of 77/r Xi ir Yoih Jlcrahf that on the 18th iiist., three Oreenlanders jueked up on an iee-tloe some eliects, and sonit^ j)artl.v torn j)aperH belon^'ing to tho Ameri- can Arctic Jeannetto exp-dition. anion^' which are tho fol- lowing: "1. Two (uid-])ieces of a wooden l>ox, on wdiicli are written witli lead ])encil, on one piece: GENERAL ORDERS. TELEGKAMS. SAILING OHDERS. DISCIPLINE. SHIP S PAPERS. VAIUOrs AGItEEMENTS. CHARTER PARTY. "The last words not very plain. On tlio other piece was: DEFORE SAILING. "3. A torn check book. On tlio back of one of tlio checks is printed, 'For deposit with tho l)ank of California.' "4. A pair of oilskin trousers, marked: Lours NoROS. ARCTIC DRIFT AND OCKAN CrRRKNTS. 7 " These rll'ccts, nuiiil)t'riii<^' Iwciily-oiic iiicccs (hcsidcs tlio, papers), (ire in iny i><)ss('ssi()ti. I iim ;,'oiii;,' lioiiu! to rt'iniiiu iluriii;,' till! winter. Should iiiiyhody want further int'orm- iition, tlu) siiine vnu ]h\ obtiiiu h\ iiddressin;^ " KoI-ONflllSTVItKU ('. JiYTZKN, '■ Kon^d. (Ironl, ll.uidels-Kontor, " KjohiiihfiN II, K., " ik'iiniaj'k. "lit'speetfully. ('\i;l, Lvt/kn. \\ hell ('apt. Wilsoii!", report of tiu! hanpie Fhioniic was briefly tele^. .i; '"•'A over tlie coiiutry. a tew wtsnj at fir>-f" iiudined to doubt tlie truth of tlie report, but wlien tuber jtarticuhirs wvic received, with tlie uuipialilied otru-ial rseineiit of the (Joveruor of Jiiliaiis-liaab to tlie J)anisli Consul at New York, and it was hsiiiied that the artieles recovered would soon follow, tlu; information thus became authoritatively vouched for. and is now attractiny that deep interest it so thorouj^'idy merits. STATKMKNT OK CAl'TMN WII.So.N, Capt. Alexander Wilson, who now resides at his homo, No. li():}t South Fifth street, l'hiladel|ihi.i. kindly furnishes lis the following statement. He says: The superintendent of the Kryolite mines at Ivigtut first informed him of this liighly iniiiorlant discovery. \ party of I'isipiimauv were out among the tloe ice, catcdiing seal. Late in the afternoon of Wednesday, June 18th, bSSl, they approached a piece whicdi had attracted their attention, floating in latitude (if) ;}t. DeLong and his gallant band broke camp on an ice-hoe in Lat. 77 18' N., Long. 153^' 25', E. and started southward on Saturday, June 18th, 1881, hop- ing, as DeLong then wrote in his journal — "with God's blessing to reach the New Siberian Islands, and from there, mak(! our wk} by boats to the coast of Siberia." EXPl.ANATtO.V UY ONE OI' THE " JEANNKTIE's " CHEW. {Tnder date of Newburyport, August 20th, 1884, LouIh Philipi)e Noros, one of the survivors who rea'lied Siberia with De Long's ]>arty in the first cutter, writes: — " Before we left the Jainniik we carried on tc the ice a lot of bear skins, which we spread out to form a iloor, and in addition cai'ried clothing, food, rifles, tobacco, etc. After the Jeaniicfic was cruidied wn had to leave the bear skins, a lot of canned goods, cans, rifles, and 200 or 800 pounds of 10 Al.CTIC DRIFT AiND OCEAN CURRENTS. tobacco behind, as we could not carvv theiu all over the ice. We also left all the clothing except what we had on, and a suit of nndei-clothing, which we packed and carried in a knapsack. We carried //i" tents with us, Do Long's pai'tj having two, Melville's two, and Cliipi) s one. I may possi- bly have left my sealskin ])antaloons on the ice where the JcdinuHv went down, but my impression is that they were left with other clothing, shi])'s im])lements, utensils, I)apers, etc., in the cache left l»y De Long on the Siberian coast. AVe had four tin boxes, in which De Long kept the shi])'s log and valuable ])apors, two of which were left in the cache and two carried auay by De Long when (Quartermaster Nindermann and I started south for liel)). We also left in the cache a small l)eai' skin, tlie oidy l)ear skin in the pos- session of th(> party after heaving the JciDuirUc. The ac- count says that a cask of misct-llaneous ship provisions Avas found marked Jcdintcffe. Now the fact is, we did take some bread harrels out, but after ])utting the bread in bags and loading it on our sleds we left the empty barrels btdiind on the ice." A native (lreeiilander"s language may be deticient in words capable of such nice distinctions as the exact ditlerenee be- tween our English us(> of the words cask and barrel. A large ban'(d may frequently, for purposes of general description, be called a cask. Noros further savs: — " A\ ha; ]»nz/desme most is how these articles now reported found could liave remaine(l on the ice so long. My ex})e- rience taught me that all small articles placed on the ice in the arctic nsgions always attracted the sun and gradually melted down through the ice until lost to sight. Why, in a very short time a clii]) would be buried its own thickness under the ice by this peculiar process, and if the things found really belonged to the Jritinictfc something strangely wonderful seems to have i)rovidentially kept tluun so long a time on the surface of the ice." WHAT OK [.OXO'S DIARY EXMM.AINS. Some explanation of the above nniy possibly be found in Capt. De Long's carefully written and minutely accurate ARCTIC DRII.-T AND OCEAN CURRENTS. 1 1 diary (Vol. 11, pages 5SS ct. seq.) where is inserted tlie copy of a digested synopsis of the cruise of i\ie, feanndte, up to her ^ foundering, dated on the ice-floe, Friday, June 17th, 1881, and signed by him officially. TJiis, it is recorded, he pre- pared and sewed with great care in a piece of black rubber, rendering it as impervious to moisture as possible, and caused the whole to be headed up, inside of an empty water- breaker, or small cask used for carrying Avater in boats. When thus securely packed, he left it witli the debris of their first camp on the ice-floe to which they escaped when their vessel sunk. Capt. De Long must have observed the tendency of small articles to work their way into the ice, and it seems more than likely, that in accordance with the especial care otiierwise manifest in regard to this precious record, that he had it covered over before his departure, with some of the clothing, bear skins and otljci- material, which Noros states was loft behind on the ice-floe. If cov- ering a large surface of ice with a thick coveriny would ]n-o- tect it, what course seems more natui-al for a careful and scientific commander to pursue. This may account for its -*^. i)reservation for so long a period, in good condition. The men first camjied in nlr tents, on the ice-floe, which DeLong describes (Vol. II, ])age o82) as follows: Tent "A., Headipiarters; J3., De Long; C, Ohipp; 1)., Melville; e' Danenhower; F., Ambler;" in front of which were placed three boats and foui- sledges. Accepting the statement now made by Noros, '-that the party carried south five tents, De Long's ]).irty having two, Melville's two, and Chii)i)'s one," it is apparent that, as De Long records, ,s/,r as landed on the ice-floe, one must have been left there when tlie retreat began. This accounts for the partly destroyed tent which Captain Wilson says was found on the floe. He reported that the uativ'.s .saw a bearskin covering something resembling in size and shape a human corpse. This probablv covered some provisions which could not be carried and were aban- doned on the ice, and he fully "believes that what Avas cov- ered up under the bear skin, was only apparently in the 12 ARCTIC DRIFT AND OCEAN CURHRNTS. 1 shape of a human l)()dy." May it not have been a long wa- ter-breaker? Chief t^ni>ineer Montgomery Fletcher, U.S. N., informs us that many of such a form were included in the outfit of the Jeanndd' when she left the U. S. Navy Yard at Mare Island, Cal. FOUCE AND DIIIECTION OF crnHENTS. Captain AVilson states that he "thoroughly believes that the articles on the piece of ice found oft' the coast of Greeidand really floated there — borne by the iden- tical cake of field ice upon which the JcanHcUv party encamped after the sinking of their vessel, and upon which they apportioned their outfit, and abandoned all that was unnecessary to sustain life,"' taking what they could, and leaving the remainder, before starting southward upon their retreat. Capt. Wilson has been on Avhuling ships cruising in Arctic seas for more than thirteen years. H(^ says there is nothing improbabU' in this, as he knows from frequent experience that "there is a polar current found as high as eighty degrees North, which runs in a south\v(;st direction closely along the coast of (xreenland, tlien turns at Cape Farewell and flows thence northeasterly along the western coast of Greenland uj) Baffin's Bay." Capt. Charles B. Dix, one of the owners of the Fluorine fully agrees with Cti\)t. Wilson that these relics could not possibly have drifted eastward, down through the intricate series of eliannels leading into Baffin's Bay, and thence across Davis Straits, to the point near the coast of South Greenland where they wore found. Such a circuitous route, through McClure's Strait, south of Parry Islands, and thence eastward through Lancaster or Jones' Sound into Baffin's Bay, involves a com[)licated drift of over five thousand miles, over 17 degrees of latitude and 149 d(!grees of longitude. Capt. Wilson further says: "The ice would thus be taken between Nova Zembla and Franz Josef Land, where a strong we^'.^rly current sets against Sjjitzbergen, and thence southerly around Spitzlxirgen, Avhere an indraught of the Gulf Stream gives a northern direction to the current. This northern course continues to nearly latitude 80 , longi- ARCTIC DRIFT AND OCEAN CURRENTS. n tiule 10^ east, where it meets the southward current pouring from the Polar Ocean and is carried down the east coast of Greenland. Of the portion of the journey which the ice-floe probably took I can speak from my own knowledge, as I have sailed along there myself, and the ice is carried south- ward on the current parallel with the Greenland coast at the i;ato of about twenty-five miles a day. When the ice got to Cape Farewell it was, very likely, carried around that corner of Greenland by Gulf Stream influence, and floated to the very spot where it was found. In performing this journey the relics bf the Jeaundle went over forty-five hundred miles in one thousand and ninety-six days; allowing for all the twists and eccentricities which the currents may be subject to. This would give the floes an average traveling time of about four nautical miles a day, which is just what took place. OPINIONS EXPRESSED DY DISTIXGUISIIED MEN. Dr. Emil Bessels, the Arctic explorer and well known geologist of the Smithsonian Institution, at Washington, was at first in doubt in regard to the brief telegra})hic report, but upon receipt of fuller details he gave as his opinion that to reach that point, the floe on which they were found must liave drifted along the northerly part of the known coast of Greenland, and have been carried by the East Greenland ice stream, which doubles Cape Farewell, around that capo into .' vicinity of Julianshaab. The currents in Baffin's Bay and Davis Straits are such that the cold current which doubles Caiie Farewell runs to the northward on the inside of a branch of the Gulf Stream drift, which jn-obably does not extend further north than Disco. He says most em- phatically that "the floe vould not have come doion Baffin's Baij to where it was found, as the currents issuing from Smith Sound, Jones Sound and Lancaster Sound, closely follow the eastern shores of the North American Archipel- ago, bending— as all southward currents do— to the west- ward. Whatever channels the ice floe had come through it would necessarily have followed the course of currents along its route." 14 ARCTIC DRIFT AND OCEAN CURRENTS. Cliiuf-Engiuoor Melville, one of tlio Kurvivors of the Jeait- veffe cx]U'(litloii, after iiiialv/ing all data obtainable from the IT. S. Hvdrographic OtHce Ke])orts, with a careful Hcrutiny and comparison of arrows, indicating the currents observed by various navigators and distinguished geographers, and being perscuially familiar with the Ar.-tic literature in gen- eral, and the drift of the Jvdiniclfv up to her loss, has ex- pressed h'-. carefully determined belief than the drift from where they left the vessel would eventually have taken lier safely out had she remained staunch and intact, proceeding south-easterly past the southern end of Franz Josef Land, thence moving at a ver}- rapid rate when the pack im])inged upon that group of land, and continuing on in the current, passing south of Spitzbergen, around Bear Island into At- lantic waters. Ho says before the Jen»)icffc sunk, they all ftdt sure their vessel would continue to drift northwest during tlu; coming year, they having then got out of tiiat r(;giou of Arctic dold- rums, as far as drift is concerned, which whirls ice around iu circles, in a locality just north of AVrangel island. The Arctic seems to be a very shallow ocean, largely studded with an island archipcjiago, and on the Pacific side many indications ])oint to the ])ossible existence of a small Arctic continent surrounding the physical pole. The greatest depth encountered by the Jeauuetfv during her first year's drift was not over sixty, and the least seventeen fathoms. The bottom from which was taken many meteoric si)ecimens, was gener- ally' uniform, averaging about thii'ty fathoms only. The Jefniiicfic had already drifted UK^re than half way to the lon- gitude of the river Yenisei, a \nn\\i on the northern coast of Asia visited b}- steamers from Hammerfest in Norway, be- longing to Alexander SSiberiakolf, an enterprising llussiau merchant, who tvttdes there f(jr wheat and other local prod- uct.^ Professor George Davidson, President of this Academy, who, as Assistant in charge of the Bureau of the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey in this city, and author of the Alaska Coast Pilot published by the LI. S. Government, has devo- ARCTIC DRIFT AND OCEAN CURRENTS. 16 ted years of patient toil to the eonsideration of Arctic and kindred currents of the Nortli Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, IS as well qualified to express an opinion on such matters as any one on our Coast. He says: It would seem highly probable that the i^reservation of these De Long relics may have been effected in this wise. After the party left the floe in boats, all relics that remained may have been covered with a blanket of snow, and thus preserved from immediate shift- ing or loss. This, with subse(iuent snows and rains, would form a nvv!-. or snowv body of ice, overlying them, which may have thus remained, not only all the next summer, but have been added to the following winter, more especially if the floe followed a track in the general direction of the pole, keeping thereby in a region of intense cold. This method of preservation, must have been repeated, until the floe passed into currents bearing it southward; where, encount- ering a warmer temperature, the protective covering of ice or n!-v(- would melt away three years' deposits, and just at such an opportune period, the party of Greenlanders ap- peared to witness these relics, and rescue all but the water- breaker, or other stores under the bear-skin and partially destroyed tent. Nordenskiiild, the first circumnavigator of the continents of Europe and Asia, by this northwestern passage along the Arctic circle, has given us largo additions to our knowledge of Arctic phenomena. He says, "In geology a knowledge of Arctic lands is an indispensable condition in determining the former history of our globe." So in physical science, a thorough knowledge of Arctic currents is needed as a key to unlock many an important question, now clouded with un- certainty. Alfred Ilussel Wallace, in his work, Island Life, says it is highly desirable to estimate the amount of heat stored up in currents of warm water, which proceed from the tropics to north polar basins by many large streams and rivers; and by a continual process of gradual equalization, under a dry non-conductor of ice, these operate io a certain extent in ameliorating the rigors of an Arctic winter. 16 ARCTIC DRIFT AND OCEAN CURRENTS. Mr. Clement E. Murkliiim, the (listinguishetl Secretary of the British Royal Geogriiphical Society, aft(>r comiaeuting on the unfortunate misatlveuture and valuable results of the Greely expedition, expresses his firm belief that " Polar re- search will now continue more vigorously and wisely until this much needed scientific work has been com])leted." POLAR EXPEDITIONS CONTEMPLATED AND UNDER WAY. The Danisli government expedition un(h'r Lieut. Jensen, of the Royal Navy, left in May to explore the west coast of Greenland, and is exjiected to return to Coi)enhagen in Octo- ber. A similar expedition under Lieut. Holm, is about proceeding northward along the east coast of Greeidand, and a third botanical and zoological expedition, under Prof. Warming, has left Denmark for West Greenland. Through these channels we may receive additional infor- mation from the De Long records, left afloat in the direlect water-breaker. Another Danish Polar Expedition will start from Copen- hagen for the frozen Northwest next summer, proceeding by the way of Franz Josef Laud. It will be under the leader- ship of Lieut. Andreas Hovgaard, R. X. of reja Expedition conjointly with Gamel. Russia is also organizing a Polar Expedition. From St. Petersburg, under date of August 27th, 1884, we hear that the ministry of marine has issued to several learned soci- eties a plan for a Russian Polar Expedition. The idea is to have several large parties start from Jeannette Island and proceed entirely on foot across the ice, leaving large depots of provisions in their rear. It is thought there are many islands north of Jeannette Island that could be utilized. Lignite, suitable for fuel, is there found cropping out at the surface in large (pnuitities, also oftering facilities for manufacturing gas necessary for use in captive balloons. This is much needed for observations to determine Avliat route to take, and for a general topographical reconnois- ance. Xordenskiold is contemplating an expedition to explore the Antarctic continent. 1 ARCTIC DRIFT AND OCEAN CURRENTS. 17 X The object of the Greeley expedition was to estnl)lisli one of tlio thirteen Polar stations, sngK^'stecI by Lieutenant Weyprecht, of Austria, who ilisL-ovored Franz Josef Land. Simultaneous observations of all ])hysical phenomena were taken. The complete programme was arranged by an inter- national Polar congress, in which rei-resentatives of thirteen nations took ])art. Observation in which the greatest possi- ble accuracy was to be had were those of declination and de- viation of the magnetic needle, height of barometer, temper- ature of the air and sea, mean and maximum rise and fall of tides, the drift of ice-floes and the direction of currents. All geographical and other explorations were incidental to the main objects of the expedition. SOME RESULTS AND SUGGESTIONS. Arctic research, which has advanced about three hundred miles northward since Baffin immortalized himself in the year WU\, will now be more carefully and skilfully under- taken, by the practical application of wisdom gained through ex})orience. From a scientific standpoint the Amcrio.n Expedition at Lady Franklin Bay in hit. 81 40' North, has accomplished noteworthy residts. One of its geograi)hical successes "is the attainment of a higher latitude than tliut reached by Capt. Markham in the British expedition of 1875- (). This feat was achieved by Lieut. Ltjckwood and Sergeant Brainard on May 13th, 1.S82, who reached an island oil" the coast of Greenland in lat. 83^ 25' N., long. 44 05' West, from the summit of which, Avhen 2,000 feet high, they saw no land to the northward, but at the northeast a cape, which they named Kobert Lincoln, in lat. 83 35' N., long. 38 32' W. It will be remembered that Captain Markham 's farthest was 83 20' 20" North, and about 20 degrees of longitude west of Lieut. Lockwood's farthest i)oint. Greeley makes the suggestive announcement, that at Lady Franklin^Bay Lat. 81 40' N., Long. 04 30' W., the tides rise and fall 8 feet, and come from the north. They average 29' above zero Faht., which is two degrees warmer than MM 18 ARCTIC DRIFT AND OCEAN CURRENTS. those at Melville Bay and Cajx' Sabine, where the tides come from the south. Lockwood foniul at S!} 25' N., ahout the same vej^'eta- tioii as at Lady Fraiikliu JJay, mikI is courtdent that with a sulHi-iciit sui)i)iy of provisions they could have reached Lat. 85- North. All the omeial records of the Clreely Arctic expedition, including' the sled,i>e party under Li((ut. Lockwood, as well as the private journals oi' the entire party, arc now in the hands of Lieut. V. H. liay, lately in cliar-.3 of tlu^ U. S. Meteorolo^ieal Signal Station, Point Barrow, Alaska. Ho will compile a detailed history of the (ixpedition, which, it is exi)ected, may l)e ready for publication soon after ad- journment of the next Congress. Ju conclusion allow me to suggest a new and automatic metlKHl of ascertaining the drift of Arctic currents, without auv undue exposure of human life. Could not an hundred or more projjcrly constructed casks, capable; of withstanding any probable ice pressure, l.)e branded with the date and po- sition in which they may be set adrift, coupled with a re- (piest to have all i)artieulars of their discovery sent immedi- ately to Washington? CHARLES WOLCOTT BROOKS. ( ■^; "^'"^'^B.r.l....BV^^^'''' i