TO THE SOUTH POLE.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1047, 9 February 1911, Page 5

TO THE SOUTH POLE.

*; — •• ■ ■ - ",-..■.-.---;..vi V '.-•' .- —~ ♦— : --■''■■•,. yVnC'3 - rn:3nternationai;' t\mC I IN WEt-' i '._,':/;xington.;,-/,;^; v l ~WHO-WILL; BE FIRST? 1 Captain Scott, 8.N., is not to have, V: the South Pole to himself. \-X few days. ' ; ago a few particulars' were".published ; of; ... a Japanese expedition, which had set-ojit: v ; from Tokio in a stout little auxiUary harjj ; Ji quentine called the.: Kwai-nan-Jlanr .j ("boat to open, the south") and she was, ' yi to make for Wellington via Honolnlu.At:" \;M 2 o'clock yesterday afternoon thisvlittle" ;~: vessel, poked her nose round Point Hals>.% well inquisitively and let go her anchdrV : well-to, the north .of the fairway neat- ';; Somes Island, .where she waited for tha_; Port Health.Officer to'give her leave to;; ; .'« come a little nearer civilisation. As 3 the Janie Seddon steamed alongside- with; ;; iij Dr. Pollen on board, the crew of ;nug-.,,-;'.•'.;-] gety little brown, men smiled a welcome* .T'-j as they reported that all was well—-"noV: ,vi sickness"-and "no losses.": They rertain-y.'■'. i] 'Ty. ( l(jbked'i , ,'air'weU"«'ahd if the happy, ':.-f ; optimism" that lighted up. their-weather;;':.. v| beaten, but lively intelligent faces after;;."] a battle across the Pacific from Hawaii", . ;1 be any guide to the character; of: the;." : M men, these small strangers niay.be deK r . -ij [ ponded on to make a bold bid for th,e,".:'. -lOi honour of reaching the South Pole. -The■■/■:.-;-j| | commander of the expedition, Lieutenant.;'. .vjj V. Shirase, full of the authority and the; ■.""<.; immutable repose of the Oriental, , was; x;-:,' quietly courteous iii demeanour.'' He.caiK, * 1 not speak. English,, and therefore-it iwaiv.;: ,1 impossible to hold conversation withhim,:;:<;« but later on 'he landed to pay his-re-';-,>.';'i spects- to the Japanese Consul XMr.-:T.;;.-,:;l Young) who with the aid of. an' inter-'".:':, j pretor was able to elicit that the Kwai--. '■:;■ -\ nan-Maru . had called '; -in. at. ,WeU, ;;;:j lington,•;'. as . originally' : arranged to' ; v \-:a supplement her provisions'with a quantity,;- .', 4 of. New Zealand's excellent cannedihieati >.1«3 and vegetables, fill'her bunkers with oo'alli> -j and' her tanks with fresh water. ; :This.: .' | operation,. Lieutenant.-Shirase estimateHj': ..i, wmild occupy three days, so that thoS'V; . "boat that is to open the South" iwiJH:t/-.V sail again: for tho' Frozen.' South, ori:'-;' Saturday.' •' •'..' ■■.'■•'~ :; ".-'■ ■"■'•'; : .- : > i ;>S : r ";'-■'', <Th 6 expedition' consists of 27 men all- r ; ;' told:' These include Mr.-Takeda Terutarp,;-:v-: formerly a teacher, in the Fifth School,"who will interest himself'in,;.*.* 1 meteorological surve;: of, the land 'trav-*; * « ersedand its natural products, and; Jfr.-'/• Kurino Telsuzo, ;an : 'instructor .initliey-'-i commercial department of the, Waseda..;,-; ; iii.; University; who will take ;photographio';- ; < records of. astronomical phenomena ; .ia'v,,'i; the lone white land. '.They are all said to ',•-";•;'. be keen on the work in hand, and formed, the Consul; that they .;_had ;.i£« V >: ; highest hoDes of success" in their, under- ;V. - : taking. > Though it was hot a Govcnflnent [< ;.;;' expedition, l , tho State had given -'a 9Ub-l ;..'.> stantial.aid, and the voyagers;had beert j, •) accorded an .farewell;;-an ':;;;.; Japan, w-heh the hope was expressed that i:.? Shirase, and' hiY- men would'.succeed 'ih::;:.' planting the Banner' of the Flaming Sun: -;-,;; on the. southernmost point ,dn the;-wprli, ?;..-: Not by any, Means; ■'''.?;; ' :?.H ■ Some caustic criticism was" hn'rled • atK;; ; the expedition before ; leaving ;■ Japan, l vie; doubts being>cast:on'the seaworthiness:of/;;.%■ the Kwai-nan-Maru, but like other a .y -countries, suffers from a plague of; yellow; J,'j journals, whose:statements' are -not'-aU.,'.'<' together to be relied upon/ Though sma'llti; •- j shin appears t6 j beVsti£E-b'uilt;;!i'i ( wooden craft, which has been strengthened v. ■•' •:■] by an. extra -sheathing, of wood,- which- : ';> rises to a-,foot above the water line, and;;, .-j over that; again she has been sheathed :>j : i in;steel-" Whilst-thisihas not.improved, \, ;•;.] her speedV it -i is calculated that,;," with»: ':> s; ordinary-' lack, the.- vessel' will :be ;;sfout ;>;<! enough, to '■ fight, through ■ the terrors; of ;' U\ the Antarctic gales. ' The;expedition;said itb ,be well-provisioned. J ;The decks -.4 arejaden with well:lashed cases and which over''a' year's, supplyj-for ■■..■■ ;.j the Ijttte band of brown men, andjbelow ; ;; . , deck space occjipled. :., ; i The expedition is not bothering with pon--, .-.-tf ies—the final dash'for the pole,.is to-be,: .<> mado'with' the aid.of a' dozen Esquimaux : ;. i dogs," "which are safely kennelled--on the.,.-;>, fore-deck.'When: the.dogs give out, the, : :',.; men'will'.rely on' their own: stamina and i.s^ : 'pluck tri; "get ;there :r:<. - -. ; :.:[;fy' ■:::^-^ The Expedition's J : " .J':^:;| ' Before leaving japan Lieatenant Shirasa/ ? ;4 made a' statement in the course.of -which.; f : a he said that'they would,call in:at;Wellington for coal and supplies, and .after j, ■_ ,-.* covering the - 2172, -mUes ,' ,6f -•:'. Ocean' hoped- to;reach- King~Edward VII;, y-fi Land about the middle of February. . Af-,';'-;] ter the shore > party landed, .the. Tessel. ;,,,;] would return to Wellington'as at is con-; . ; 1 sidered too ; dangerous to- permit of -fier..; ..-J wintering off vthb Carrier.' ThevmemberS;.;oj ■ of the expedition,-after'making themselves.*;;-.-.-.j ; as "comfortable as'circumstances would permit, would engage in exploration;work| s v'£ during the-;-ensuing: seven months, make their'big'; effort-to ; in the middle. of September; next, over/trM tho intervening 000 miles: ;:;Tliey "timate" v that'';this^.; trip ■. ., will ■;. about 155 days ; The .Kwai-nan-Mara.;i;J would leave : _for -the,- ±1 base : late , this t year, party in February, return and proceed oh-to Japan, .via So farthey are:only a day or;SO;OUt jn yM their, '~;■. .. : :r V 7";<*jg| An ; Heroic;Enterprise.; v ,f ;;i^i^'_ : ' Speaking at pedition,' president: of society backing I Jic" undertaking,; that the heroic Shirn=e .was undertaking in" the: interests^of/.science y?;A than the: action, of .a y stood' up: with a sword; in : Such^a- hcroic-ienterprise was.-unprece-:^. r J dented in' the.anrials.or Japan,.-and^l^,^ ' ;the s ; Japanese-people and influence,.them mj.-l a? ? favourable direction^, i;Licutenaiit Shirase's action: was not an.empfr ? ;3 bastid example of grandiloquence;but of: the: shell :itself.;; This shot^^ , awVke the lumber, aiid inspire it vi"onr. ! The profound faith-of. the.Lieu-... ; ,y tenant'would-wt fail to sudce=s' in -the • exploration. "He- (the. ,v| sneaker), in common: with, the Iffl would bid good-bye to the herpwfcii Lieutenant;and, '-•' d Vricome: the party af: the head of, bh.na-, iat 3 on their ; Lieritehant Shira^:and;Capt a master of the : Kwai-nan-maru,., thardced v ;, j| heJapanese, people for the snpport,gJ«n = a J them;,and assnred those present -that &&&s „„ldMt fail to accomplish ,th«r ,ob]ect.; ?