CIRCUMNAVIGATION.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1218, 29 August 1911, Page 5

CIRCUMNAVIGATION.

A NEW EECOED CLAIMED. By Telegraph-Press Assocfation-Gopyrijlit Paris, August 27. M. Schmidt, a French journalist, circled tho world, via Siberia, Japan, and Canada, in 39 days 19 hours and 43 minutes. This is a record. ROUND THE WORLD IN FORTY DAYS. AN EASY FEAT. Thero is nothing particularly wonderful about the attempt of M. Jager-Schmidt, a Paris journalist, to halvo Jules Verne's period ol 80 days for a trip round the world. M. Jager-Schmidt is not even taking tho Jules Verne route, but secures an immense advantago in time-saving by the aid of the railway across Siberia. With regard to tho statement that this Parisian traveller hopes to beat M. Gaston Stiegler's "record" of 03 days, Mr. Cecil Gray, managing editor of "Great Britain in tho Coronation Year," claims a better record. "In 1900," Mr. Gray told a London "Daily News" representative on July 20, "I journeyed from London to London, via Japan and America, in 55 days, just beating the then record of 57 days held by Mr. George Griffith, wlio accomplished that feat on beJialf of a London weekly paper. At that time, you will remember, thero was no Siberian railway. "M. Jager-Schinidt's trip is really only round the North Pole. It cannot be called seriously 'round the world.' Anybody could do it in 3G or 37 days. If you start from Victoria at 8 o'clock tonight, say, you can be in Yokohama at C o'clock on the morning of Sunday fortnight; and you're halfway round then. But you have never really touched the tropics. i "On my trip I got the ordinary connections of train and steamer, but. no doubt, I saved a little over Jlr. Grimth's time by knowing my way about in certain places l>ettcr than he. Nowadays, of course, you could improve) on that record. The journey across the Atlantic then took eight days; now it con be done in five days. You can get from Vancouver to New York, too, in i\ days, instead of six." Here is Mr. Gray's time-table for 1900:— Jan. 22—Tx?ft Victoria Stationßp.m. Jan. 21—Left Brindisi. Jan. 27-Left Port Said. Jan. 28—Left Suez. Feb. I—Left Aden. Feb. 7—Left Colombo. Feb. 11—Left Penang. Feb. 12—Left Singapore. Feb. IC-Left Hong Kong. Mar. I—L"ft Vancouver. Mar. 10-Left New York. Mar. 18— Southampton. Mr. Gray was nuito clear about his dates', but some doubt was thrown at Mo=ots. Cook's nnon the seventeen days allotted to the "journey between Hong Kmi" and Vancouver—which, 'according to the "travel oxperK cmiW =™m']y i-vo been done in less than 22 days. • * With ordinary luck," if w said, the Trenchman should be able to complete his tour in 39 days. Anybody could do it, with tho assistance of our time-tables."