A.
i,v:
THE PITTSBURG
PAGES 17 TO 24.
BiSPATGS:
. THIRD PAflT.
-- :
-
THE ICE,
Dr. Kansen Details His Plan
for Drifting Across the
- Polar Regions.
THE IMG WINTER NIGHT
Tp'Be Lightened by Electric Lamps
led bj a Wind Engine.
PROVISION AGAINST ACCIDENT.
Bathetic and Tragic Moryof Suffering: on
Jan Kajen Island.
A JOURNAL UNDER THE HAND OP DEATH
nnUTTEir FOB THI DTSPATCB.1
Dr. Fridtjof Xansen, who propose to be
drifted across the North Polar regionB,
lately read a paper
detailing his plant
before the Royal
Geographical So
ciety of London.
From Pali Matt
Eudgtfi report I
glean the interest
ing passages fol
lowing. The illus
tration tells how
he proposes to
drift better than
words can. He
will start in the
spring.
There were two
Dr lien en.
methods of tryine to obtain the result
he longed for, said Dr. KariBen. First,
build a strong ship so constructed
that it could withstand the pressure
of the ice, and, living in this ship,
to float across with the ice; or, second, to
take only boats along, encamp on an ice
floe, and live there while floatinc across.
His plan was based on the use of both these
methods. He had now built a wooden ship
as small and as strong as possible; it was
Senry Hiidson.
Dlsco-erer of Jan Mayen.
just big enough to carry provisions for "12
men for five or six years, besides the neces
sary fuel; her size was about COD tons dis
placement with light cargo. She had -an
engine of 160 indicated horse-power, which
would cive her a speed of six knots, with a
consumption of 2J tons of coal in 24 houjs.
She would consequently be no last vessel
nor a good sailer; but this was of relatively
little importance on such an expedition,
where they would have to depend princi
pally on the speed of the current and the
ice movement, and not that of the ship.
Would Be Raised on the Ice,
In further description of his vessel, he
explained that it was so built that it was of
a plump and rounded form, so as to leave
no place for the ice to catch hold of, and,
owine to her sloping sides, she would, in
placeor being crushed, be raised by the ice
until she rested upon her keel on its sur
lace. The vessel was launched at Laurvik
on the 2Gth of October, and was named
Pram, which meant "forward." Fram
would'certainly be the strongest vessel ever
used in the Arctic regions. She would be
crushed only in a quite extraordinary com
bination of circumstances. "With this
vessel and a crew of 12 stronc and well
picked men, besides an equipment for five
or six years as good in all respects as mod
ern appliances could afford, he thought the
enterprise had a good prospect of success.
He expected to reach the farthest possi
ble point north in open water in August or
September. When they could get no
farther they would have nothing left but to
run into-the ice at the most favorable spot,
and from there trust entirely to the current
running across the Polar region. The ice
would, perhaps, soon begin to press, but it
would only lift their strong ship. Proba
bly they would, in this way. in the course
of some years, be carried across the Pole,
or near it and into the sea between Spits
bergen and Greenland, where they would
get into open water again, and be able to
return home. There was, however, a possi
bility that the ship, iu spite of all precau
tions, might be crushed in the ice, but if
this happened the expedition would have
another resource. It would then be time
to use the ice as quarters instead of the
ship, and they would have to move all
provisions, coal, boats, etc, to an icefloe
and camp there.
Two Warm Saloons on the Ice.
For this purpose he had built two big
boats, 29 feet long, 9 feet broad, with flat
bottoms,. and so deep that they could sit and
He comfortably Inside them." They had a
deck, and were so big that the whole crew
could live even in one of them. These
boats would be pieced side by side on the
ice, would be covered with thick warm
tents and snow, and would give two good
warm saloons. Thus they could continue
their journey. When they emerged into
open water On this side of the Pole there
would not be any great difficulty in return
ing nome in their boats; such a thing had
been done before. Whether they succeeded
or not, he felt that this was the way iu
which the unknown regions would some
day be crossed.
it might be possible that the current
would not carry them exactly across the
Tnl- lint it could not easily be very far off.
and the princ'pal thing was ,to explore the
tmtnii-ii Tvnlar regions, not to reaeh that f
mathematical point in which the axis of our
globe had its northern termination. It
could not be considered improbable that
BRAVING
North Eatf
JAN 3IAYXN Or. BavrS'
they should reao"h open water.on this side
of the Pole within two years after the start
from the Siberian side. "He could not, how
ever, expect that the course would be one
straight line forward during nil this time;
but when they took provisions for five or
six years they had an ample margih. This
might, perhaps, seem to many to be a long
time, but there was a great advantage in
this route that when the expedition was
once well begun there would not be much
help in looking backwards; their hope
would then lie on the other side of the Pole,
and such a knowledge was a good hlp to
get fram, or forward.
light From a Windmill.
Dealing with equipment. Dr. Nansen
said thej would taKe dogs, sledges, "ski
and snow-shoes, besides meant for sledge
traveling, while their scientific equipment
would be chosen with the greatest care. To
live a healthy life in all respects was natur
ally very important Two of the principal
conditions to keep one's health were heat
and light. In order to produce the neces
sary heat they would live together in a
small room during the coldest season, and
they would have good warm clothes. The
difficulty as to licht, where the darkness
lasted six months, he believed they would
be able to overcome by the help of the pow
erful electrio light. They would have a
dynamo for producing electricity worked
by the wings or a windmill.
But even when there was no wind at all
they would be able to produce power. The
expedition would number 12 men, strong
and well picked, and when a walkmill was
arranged on deck they would be able to do
work similar to that which a horse did in
its horsemillon land. In this walkmill
four men would take their cum at a time,
thus they would obtain good and regnlar
exercise somewhat monotonous perhaps
and would at the same time be useful by
producing electricity, so that they could
have an electric arc lamp burning eight to
ten hours a day. Everybody would under
stand what a blessing that must 'be when
one was surrounded by a constant darkness.
Tragic Story of Jan Mayen.
The Frenoh expedition sent out last sum
mer on the little steamer Manche to collect
specimens of natural history in Jan Mayen
and Spitzbergen has recalled a story not
told in well-known books of Arctic travel,
but now found in the record kept by the
victims of the tragedy and preserved at The
Hague. It has beei "translated into French
by the latest visitors' to. the island, but, as
far as, the writer knows, it has never been
published in English.
The bleak and' barren island, 35 miles
long, is about 300 miles north of the Arctic
Circle, and nearly midway between ice and
and Spitzbergen. It was lilted above the
sea in a past age by some tremendous vol
canic eruption. It "is very mountainous,
and Mount Beeren, itshighest summit, rises
8,000 feet above the seal Always covered
with ice and snow, there are no shrubs or
other vegetation, or any living thing to
gladden the eye except in a few sheltered
valleys; and it was in these valleys that
the -Manche, in July last, made her slender
harvest of Jan Mayen collections.
A House Untouched for Ten Tears.
' Nearly ten years had elapsed since a
human being ha"d landed on the little island.
CAUSE
The contractors who are
putting up our new build
ing 'adjoining our present
one have notified us that
they must have immediate
possession of several floors
on one side of our store
so as to make connections
between the two buildings,
The floors which must be
cleared are filled with furni-'
ture. What to do with it
we don't know, as much
of our space is already oc
cupied with Christmas
Gifts. Even our vast Car
pet Department is crowd
ed with furniture.
EASY CHAIRS.
A complete line in Lea
ther and Corduroy.
Handsome Chairs in
REAL ::: LEATHER
UP.
3P 'Store open each even
ing from now until Christ
mas tmtil p o'clock. t
The earlier you come
the better you'll be pleased.
Of course, the best are apt
to go first
GASH OR CREDIT.
E
I
$18
K
. ' - ... ...,.,.-.-.. ; I - ...-.- I . - J
The voyagers on the Manche were greatly
surprised when they landed in Marie Muss
Bay and advanced into a valley somewhat
sheltered fro the winds, where .they aaw
the little wooden building that had housed
the Austrian Circnm-Polar party for 13
months in 1882-83. The storms of a decade
had bleached and worn the exterior, but
within, everything was as the Austrian
had left it. Not a drop of water had
entered. In the kitchen was a dish full of
frozen birds' eggs. One sailor had
forgotten a little package he had
wrapped in a handkerchief. A
shirt was hanging- on a line where,
ten years before, it had been placed to dry."
Maximum and minimum thermometers
hung on the walls.
In an excavation under the house, which
had served as a bathroom and a dark cham
ber for the photographer, were some bottles
of wine, and the visitors drank it, well as
sured that this particular fruit of the vine
was at least 10 year's old. A zinc box in a
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DR. KANSEN'S
corner contained some well-preserved bis
cuit. On the walls hung photographs of a
dozen officers and sailori, and pictures and
caricatures Irora illustrated journals. All
these objects showed how well even perish
able articles may be preserved for years In
high Northern latitudes.
Project ofa Whaling Company,
It was in the neighborhood of this Aus
trian' station that-seven Dutchmen perished
on the island in the seventeenth century.
In 1633 the Greenland Company of Amster-
iWrJsrvr-7
BaU3l
""its'":
wL-Tt;? X
SCa
K-"jJA "
BRASS BEDS,
FOLDING BEDS,
LACE CURTAINS.
THIS ROCKER $4.00.
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PITTSBURG. SUNDAY.
dam, which had large whaling interests in
the Northern seas, determined to send a
small party to Jan Mayen to pass the win
ter, very little was known then of the
long Arctic night, and the company de
tired to ascertain if it were feasible to win
ter whaling parties on Jan Mayen, where,
in the spring, they wonld be in the neigh
borhood of their season's work. The com
pany selected seven sailors who were to re
main on the desolatedsland a year. Only
one of the sailors could read and write anil
the record was to be kept by him.
On August 20, 1G33, the seven sailors
were landed on the island. The company
had provided them with everything that
was thought necessary for their comfort
and well being. They had , provisions in
abundance, but unfortunately, the com
missary supplies consisted la'rgely of salt
meat. This shows how little was known at
that time of the food required in Arctio
regions. Such a diet was certain to breed
scurvy, and the sad fate of men placed in
PBOPOSED BOUTE.
Jan Mayen to-day with a similar supply of
winter food could be predicted with
certainty. A few live fowls and a dog were
also lauded with the sailors, besides a
couple of small cannon "to defend them
selves against Spanish pirates."
Faithful Record of the Weather.
At this time there were neither barome
ters nor thermometers; and yet the Dutch
called this expedition a meteorological mis
sion. All the men could do was to record
the state of the weather, the force and direc
Sf3KW3s?6SSSJSffiaSSe
Sana
gntntntntntm
SK
fS3eSHJ5sBSC30
nfrrtflsntrBlrH?
AT UNUSUALLY ATTRACTIVE PRICES
DESKS, .
MUSIC CABINETS,
CARD TABLES,
MIRRORS,
BOOK CASES
HALL TREES
CHEVAL
GLA3SES,
.BEDROOH
SETS,
"WABDKOBES,
DRESSING
TABLES,
TEA SETS.
LAMPS.
A fine assortment of all the
, latest and best, makes and styles.
BANQUET LAMPS.
$2 TO $15
H
DECEMBER 18, 189a
tion of the wind and the condition of the
tea. Theirjournaldoesnot mention auroral
phenomena. They, however, most faith
fully carried out all the observations they
were told to make. Quite a large number
of white bears visited them during the
winter, and at the Austrian expedition of
ten years ago saw only two or three, these
animals seem to have" largely diminished
in that region within the past two centuries
and a halt.
During the fall the- party were able to
collect a few herbs to eat as a salad, and it
was not until late in the winter that they
began to suffer terribly from scurvy. On
March 15 a bear was killed and the record
says that ai they had long eaten nothing
but salt meat, this provision of fresh tood
greatly rejoiced them. At this time all
were victims of scurvy. A week later
they wrote'that the lack of fresh provisions
had caused them at last to lose courage.
They were so feeble that their legs could
hardlv support them. The recorrW their
sufferings from day to day invariably closes
with a report of the weather observations
they hid been instructed to make.
The Keeper of the Record Dies.
April was the fatal month. On April 3,
only two of the seven sailors were able to
gel'out of doors. The two last fowls were
killed and given to the men who were suf
fering most, in the hope to restore a little
of their strength. This nourishment did
them much good, and the party longed for a
feu- dozen more fowls. The doc was kept
as a last resource. On April 16 the writer
of the record died. The next entry reads:
Hay the Lord have mercy on his soul and
upon us. for we are all very sick. The wind
Is blowing fresh from the East.
The only man in the party who, when it
landed on the island, knew how to write,
was the first to die, and the work of keep
ing the record then devolved upon another
who had learned to write during the winter.
Thereafter the record was very badly
written and spelled. On April 19 the
sailor wrote:
TVe have not a particle of fresh provi
sions, and our condition grows worse from
dav to day. Wo see' no hope of recovery
now, for we lack the tilings we moat need
to check the scurvy and to ward ofT the
effects of the terrible cold. If we were In
cood health wo could exercise and keep our
selves warm, but now this Is impossible.
We aro all so sick that we can scarcely
stand, and there is little hope left. We de
pend on the mercy of God. The wind and
the weather are the same as yesterday.
The Second Record Keeper Dies.
On April 23 this record appears iu the
journal:
To-day no one Is able to help himself ex
cepting me. All the work of assisting others
tins now fallen upon me. lam doing my
duty us well as I cin, and 1 shall doit as
lonjr lis God elves me tho streuto to move.
At this moment I went to hclu our Captain,
who asKed me to lit him from his bed. lie
seems to be dyimr, and ho thinks that this
change will dunlnt-.li Ills sufferings. The
night has been cloudy, and the wind as it
was yesterday.
Here is the record of the last few days:
April 27. Tho day is damn. To-day we
killed our dog to have a little frosh meat
It cannot help us much. The night was
cloudy but without wind.
April 29. In the night the wind changed
to tho northeast.
KH!a&3tf&aB3a8S3
$
r
Hid i ,1 1
igai(Dip,
o
.jB$25!l!lM
The Marts Reclining Chair An Elegant Present.
VMS
' 923, 925, 927
PENN AVENUE.
April SO. The day ii clear and sunshiny,
with a strong wind from tho northeast. I
think I am dying.
So ends the record. The last day's entry
is scarcely legible.
It was not until June 4 that the first of
the whalers reached the island. If they
had come a month earlier it is barely
possible that they might have . saved some
of the wretched" sailors. In front of one
of the bodies was some bread and cheese of
which the man had made bis last repatt:
aUd before the body of the man who had
written the last words in the journal was
an open prayer book.
Hudson First Fonnd the Island.
It is worth while to correct a blunder
which is to be ionnd in many encyclope
dias and books. The Dutch sailor, Jan
Mayen, whoso name was given to the is
land, was not its discoverer, as nearly every
work of reference asserts. In 1607 the great
English traveler, Henry Hudson, while ex
ploring in Arctic waters, discovered the
bleak island and gave to it the name of
Hudson's Touches. It was not nntil four
years after .that the Dutchman, -Jan Mayen,
in the ship Esk .visited the island.
It is another .case ot Colnmbns and
Amerigo -Vespucci The original dis
coverer was not honored in the name of the
thing discovered. The name of the Dutch
man was given to the island, and one ol its
extinct craters is known as the Eifc, from
the name of his vessel; and, strangely
enough, we have a more satisfactory ac
count of Hudson's discovery of the island
than of the subsequent visit of Jan Mayen.
sj Ctbus C Adams.
EMPLOYERS HARSHLY JUDGED.
A Clergyman Views Labor Questions From
an Unusual Standpoint.
At least one man has arisen who thinks
that the grievances involved in the discus
sion ot labor questions are mostly a;ainst
the employers. -Be v. E. H. Hall, of Boston,
has a remarkable sermon in the last issue of
the Christian Hefitter in which he takes the
following ground:
"For one, I mnst confess that the abuses
which have stirred me most profoundly of
late have not been the sufferings and priva
tions of the poor, but the false ideas of
their rights aroused among them bv the
mistaken zeal of their friends not the
indifference of society toward the outcast
and oppressed, but the encouragement which
society has given them to feel that in every
struggle iu which they are engaged they are
always in the right and others, always in
the urcng. What has made my blood boil
oftenest of late has been the insolent as
sumption on the part ot the laborer, prompted
by ill-advised friends, that all the social
troubles that arise are the fault of the
moneyed classes, intent always upon gain,
and readv always to grind the poor to the
earth. I have noticed that any degree of
violence on the laborer's part is condoned
or apologized for; while, if the employer
uses the slightest force in the defense of
his property or his rights) the vials of the
whole community's wrath are poured upon
his head. I have noticed that, if the man.
CLOCKS, BRONZES,
ONYX TABLES,
SIDEBOARDS,
. CHIFFONIERS,
PARLOR TABLES,
COUCHES,'
"&&"&
FANCY
EOCKERS.
EASY
CHAIRS,
LOUNGES,
DIVANS,
CENTER
TABLES.
:?:
$S
gat isl
81
I8I - ' S38
L-n .J pJu5uJ 11 1 LJ r
RUGS.
Goat in all colors; also WolfJ
Fox and Bear Skins, lined; plain
and fancy combinations:
PRICES:
$2.50 TO $7.50.
K
i ' m x.
agers of important concerns or superintend
ents of large industries surrender to every
demand of labor and pocket every affront,
they are loudly applauded; while, if they
stand firmly for their simple rights, they
are savagely denounced. The only thing
which is praised in dealing with social
troubles is weakness and cowardice, the
only thing which is blamed is spirit and
courage. The militia, the police, the law,
are considered excellent institutions so long
as they keep wholly in the background or
wink at disturbances of the peace; they are
an intolerable despotism the moment they
are called in to enforce order and obedience.
There are organized bodies of laborers at
this very moment claiming for themselves
the right to drive all other workmen from
their occupation, and declaiming against
the State militia and the police as their
natural foes, simply because public senti
ment has abetted them in this belief, and
made it impossible for them to discriminate
"between out and out tyranny on the part
of government and the necessary mainten
ance of safety and peace.
"Now, with all possible allowance for the
advantages which the well-to-do have over
the poor, and which capital has over labor,
and all possible respect for organized labor
and the good it has already accomplished
and is still capable of accomplishing, it is
plain that this condition of things is intol
erable. It is as great a wrong to one side
as to the other. Say what we will of the
need ot mutual understanding and mutual
forbearance, cowardice and subserviency
can never be heroic traits. The state of so
ciety which makes the cultivation of these
traits necessary and' requires one class to
fawn upon auother is a bad state of society.
It makes no difference whether the poor
lawn upon the rich or the rich npon the
poor; it is equally' an evil In the true
order of society there will be no fawning
anywhere; no terrified laborers toiling on
starvation wages lest they lose their places,
no frightened employers on their knees
before their workmen. lest they block the
wheels of trade and make costly machinery
useless. A community which breeds these
ignoble traits in any of its ranks is hope
lessly ; otten, and does not deserve to pros
per, even it prosperity were possible on
such Humiliating terms. The hope of every
community, whether in ancient or in modern
times, lies in the resoluteness and courage
ot its citizens. The State is no stronger
than the members of whom it is composed.
If they are weak and time-serving, and
ready'to sacrifice everything for the sake of
peace and safety, or in order to escape
pecuniary loss, the State is itself weak. If
they are brave and strong and contemptu
ous of any loss, so their honor and self-respect
are preserved, the State is vigorous
and able to insure blessings in the end to
all its citizens. In the modern State no
class has interests apart, from the rest or in
antagonism to them. The good of one class
is the good ot all, nor can any one really
flourish at the expense of another."
Weaver Gets All of Kansas' Vote.
Topeka, Kas., Dec. 17. The State
Board of Canvassers to-day issued a certifi
cate of election to Cabali, the Populist
elector, whose election was contested on the
round of a clerical error. This makes all
f he Kansas electors Populists.
Sf3?
r
EXTENSION TABLES,
CHINA CLOSETS,
HAT RACKS.
THIS DESK $5.75.
& $czia
IS- iS
1 j! R H H I E If ll ppS?' in
B 'u V I
IS fl 3
E E C H
THE SMOKE MDST 60.
England Thinks She Has Fonnd the
Troper Way to Banish It.
RESULT 0P A SCIENTIFIC TEST.
A Plan tj Which the Weary Man Caa
tupplj Himself With Czone.
BETTEB TIMES IS THE BIG CITIES
jrOBRXSrOSDXSCI OT TO2 DISPATCH.1
LOifDOjr, Dec 9. The new English in
vention for the consumption of smoke has
been received with so much favorable criti
cism in England as to apparently have es
tablished its claim to be the most practical
method yet devised for grappling with tha
smoke nuisance in cities burning bituminous
coaL Some time ago an ingenious inventor
showed how smoke could be robbed of half
its banefulness by a refining process. His
plan was to wash the smoke before it es
caped through the chimneys. 'The new in
vention adopts an entirely different prin
ciple, burning the smoke by driving it
through the fire itselC So adaptable ia
this principle to all kinds of fires that
various cities in England are now propos
ing to utilize it for municipal works, in
cluding gas, electric lighting and destruo
tors. The London Zanut, which appointed a
special commission to test the cliims and
merits cf the system, says: "The result it
eminently satisfactory, and demonstrate!
clearly,not only the fuel-economizing effect
of the system, but also that the production
of soot is practically nil." The results of
tho tests made by the Lancet are interesting.
The report of the commission gives a com
parison of the deposit made by burning a
specific quantity of coal uoder the new sys
tem and in an ordinary range, over a period
of several days. Under the new system the)
percentage in dry deposit was: Carbon,
7.20; hydrogen. 0.23; mineral matter, 89.15;
nitrogen (partly as ammonia) and oxygen,
3.42, as against a percentage in tho ordinary
ninue o : Carbon. 7B.76: mineral matter.
16 C8. and nltrosen (ammonia), 0 33. the mois
ture bcin respectively O.70 and 6.63 ner cent.
Coming from such an 'authoritative source,
these figures carry great Weight. It Is a sig
nificant (act that in no single instance wero
incomplete products of combustion lite car
bon monoxido or sulphuretted hydrogen ob
tained. But tho inhabitants of cltle3 are now
promised, not only an atmosphere prac
tically smokeless, but a ready means ot
chargln; the nlr over a largo area with
ozone. 3Ir. Leggott, the Inventor of tho
new method of smoke consumption spoeoa
of above, at a recent meeting in London
stated that he boped shortly to be able to
demonstrate tnat by a twist of the hand tha
wearied Londoner wonld presently turn on
his supply oriife-renewlng ozone just In tha
same way as he now switches on electricity
or turns on gas or water.
EFFECT
To make the needed
room and quickly we have
determined on a big sac
rifice on all' HOLIDAY
GOODS, of which we are
making a really mam
moth display.
Never in this city had
you such a chance to buy
really first-class furniture
suitable for gifts at such
prices as we are now nam
ing. We are almost giv
ing things away and will
positively refuse no reason
able offer on any gpods of
this class. We must have
room at any cost
41
HIS DESK $
Our line of Desks for every
purpose is most complete.
STORE OPEN EACH
NIGHT FROM NOW UNTIL
CHRISTMAS UNTIL 9
O'CLOCK.
Come in day or evening,
just as suits, and see and
take advantage of our
special' prices.
CASH OH CREDIT.
xSrW
c
m j.
.mib-