BYRD’S EXPEDITION

Hokitika Guardian, 15 March 1929, Page 5

BYRD’S EXPEDITION

•*By Russell Owen, copyrighted, 1929 by .Nov 'i oru l hues Company ana St. Louis Post Dispatch. All rights for publication reserved throughout the world. Win less to ‘New ) ork Times.’ ” THE XKAY LAND. (Received this day at 9.25. a.in.) BAY OF WHALES, Aiarofi 13. 'What the new stretches of land and mountain ranges already discovered by the Byrd Expedition may contain, has oeeu the siU/,ect of much speculation since they have been found, particularly as' the region east of Ross Dependency has been claimed lor the tinted States, ft is known there is a wide belt of low grade coal in the mountain range on the western side of the barrier, but there is nothing to tempt anyone to mine it yet lor a while. DIFFICULT TO .MINE. Only the most precious things, sued as jewels or rare elements like radium. would repay the expense and difficulty of extracting from the Antarctic.! There- is no doubt that such ti.ings: exist here, hut finding them would he a mere chance and it would be a hardy soul indeed who would go out in this country on a prospecting .i.rip. But if anything weVth the •trouble and danger were found., there is no reason wliv it should not be taken

• ■Spitsbergen where-eonMs mined, is nearer the North Pole than the Bay oi Whales is to the South Pole, although Snit/.borgen is easily accessible for several months of the year, duo to the Gulf Stream, and the proximity id Norway, only SQU miles away. The ‘Antarctic is cut uJ from the world by a raging ocean and belt o! ice through which ships may pass for only about two months of a year, and then with difficulty, but granted that the cargo sufficiently valuable could be secured, t lie re is .no reason why it should not be obtained, as men could live here and work under proper protection. LOW TEMPER ATT RES.

They certainly could work in mines, although the lowest average temperatures in the world are in Antarctica. The lowest recorded temperature here is ; either seventy-four or seventy-six below Fahrenheit and except when the wind blows, members of the expedition work outdoors at fifteen- to twenty below zero, without. great hardship.

.Nevertheless, it is unlikely that for many years, anyone will attempt to export diamonds or pitch blende from Antarctica. WIND POWER. There is one thing which goes to waste here and that is wind power. There is morn power blowing somewhere about here every day than is generaoted in all the central stations of the world. If we had proper equipment we could harness the wind and generate all the electricity needed for power, lights and heat. It may lie taken for granted that future expeditions will do this, for it would be a comparatively simple matter. THE DOG TEAMS. The dog teams are still going south on the barrier, having laid one base, and Larry Gould, with Balclien. and Joune are still at Rockfeller Range having been delayed by bad weather. Both parties report they are getting along well.