"POLHEIM."

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1385, 11 March 1912, Page 5

"POLHEIM."

December 3. Thence onward the ice plateau resembled a frozen sea, and sounded hollow to the tread. One man and two dogs fell through. Tho greatest altitude was reached at 10,750 feet on December 6, in 87.40 degrees. From 88.25 degrees tho plateau gradually sloped downwards. AT THE POLE. After five days' easy travelling the goal was sighted on the afternoon of December 14. A beautiful light south-east breeze was blowing, and the temperature was only minus 23 degrees Celsius (about 9 degrees below zero Fahrenheit). The ground was perfect. At three o'clock all the members of the party gathered round a silken flag on the vast plain, which stretched in all directions alike for mile after mile. During tho night tha party circled the camp in a radius of eastern (P eighteen) kilometres for three days, and took a series of careful observations. POSITION CLOSELY FIXED. The position of the Pole, Captain Amundsen declares, was fixed as doso as was humanly possible with a sextant'and : an artificial horizon erected in a little tent. The precise spot was surmounted by tho Norwegian flag and the Fram's petmant. Captain Amundsen named the place "Polheiin." The distance from the Pole to tho winter camp was 1400 kilometres (about ' 950 miles). The return journey was accomplished undor favourable conditions, the parly reaching thei"- base on January 25 with two sledges and eleven dogs. QUEEN MAUD MOUNTAINS, The entire length of the newly-discov-ered mountains was 850 kilometres (about 520 miles). The mountains wero named the Queen Maud Ranges. The expedition to King Edward's Land confirmed Captain Scott's discoveries.-

A NEW NAME FOR THE MAP. NORWEGIAN FLAG HOISTED. (Kec. March 10, 5.5 p.m.) London, March 10. The "Daily Chronicle"-, has again surpassed its rivals in the matter of Polar exploration. It secured a great "scoop" in Hansen's story of his Polar expedition of 1896, and it publishes to-day an exclusive record of Captain Amundsen's journey, telegraphed from Hobart. Between February 10 and April 11 Captain Amundsen established depots on the 80th, 81st, and 82nd degrees on the surface of tho Barrier, which was smooth and fine, and well adapted for dog-driving. No tastrugi, but only local crevasses, and none of them dangerous except two. The 'iveather was excellent, and the breezes were light and calm. FHAM'S FAR SOUTH. After fixing the depots the party returned to their base, and found that the I'ram had departed after sailing to the farthest south,. o£ .any n ship„>nnmely, to ■latitude S. 78.41. Before the arrival o'f. tho winter they had had stored sixty thousand kilos of seal meat, and had built winter quarters, wherein a Lux lamp furnished light, and maintained a temperature of 68 degrees Fahrenheit. OUTFIT REDUCED. The party spent four months of the . Binter changing their outfit, which they ' had found too clumsy on tho depot trip, and obtained some astonishing meteorogical observations. Little snow fell, aud the temperature raDged from minus 50 to 10 degrees Celsius (58 to 7G degrees below zero Fahrenheit). There wero many ex:ellent aurora and only two moderate storms. The water remained open throughout the winter. On September 8 the journey to the south commenced, but the party was forced to return owing to the continuous fall in the temperature affecting the dogs, several of them dying. A START FOR THE SOUTH. Spring came in earnest ia the middle of October, and a party of five, with four stodges, fifty-two dogs, and four months' provisions, started for the south. Another party of three went eastward to explore King Edward Land. The southerners erected cairns at internals to serve as guides on the Teturn. The,B2nd degree was reached on November 5, where the dogs got thoir last full meal. Here the party rested for three days. "LIKE A DANCE." Everything then went like a dance, and the oxplorers coverod 50 kilometres (about 82 miles) daily, establishing depots en every degree. They reached the 83rd degree on November 9, and investigated tho Koss Barrier. They nrrived at the 85th Hegroe on November 17, and on leaving marched due south, reaching the place where the land and tho barrier are con- • nected. There wore a few big crevasses indicating the limits of tho barrier. THE HEAD DEPOT. Here the party established their head depot with sixty days' provisions. They then commenced the ascent of the barrier, which was most imposing, the summits ranging from 2000 ft. to 1500 ft. Tho ground, however, roso in easy slopes, which the dogs' negotiated without difficulty. ' '( The party encountered a few steep glaciers, and were going hard as they were forced to make detours, owing to big crevasses. On the first day they climbed 2000 feet, and camped on the second day at 4500 feet. They descended on the third day by a glacier dividing the coast mountains from the mountains further south. THE LONGEST ASCENT. Then the longest a-scent commenced, up i glacier much broken and narrowed be-; tween two 15,000 feet mountains. On tho ,'ourth day from the Barrier they reached A vast plateau, and camped at an altitude of 10,600 feet. Hero they were compelled to kill twenty-four of tho dogs, retaining eighteen for the dash south. Bad weather delayed the departure by four days, and a fresh start was made on November 25, when a furious blizzard with dense snow drifts was encountered. The members ol tho party had their faces badly frozen. Then began a gradual descent, in which the S6th degree was passed. The explorers at this point momentarily saw a mighty mountain through the snow drift. The weather moderated on November 29 and the sun shone. THE DEVIL'S'GLACIER, A depot was established at the foot of the Devil's Glnoior. Tho many towering peaks in the vicinity were beautifully illuminated by tho bright sunlight, aud made a magnificent spectacle. The .Devil's Glacier was negotiated in three days, the explorers quilling it on