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Show NATIVE GRLLNLANDLM WW ylEN the newB was. sent a, I broadcast that Captain Mik- li W eIsen the Danish Arctic ad- W y venturer, with the engineer Seversen as companion, both of whom started to cross Greenland In the summer of 1910, had arrived at Aalesund, the world In general hailed hail-ed the adventurers with wonder, rather rath-er than amazement, for, as matter of fact, even the most Intelligent of average readers know precious little about Greenland. Difficult of access, particularly from America, the traveler trav-eler sees but little promise in the voyage, and even where he does fit out for the no-man's land, as. one might dub It, he is not at all certain of reaching his goal. Mikelsen and Seversen, It will be remembered, formed part of an expedition ex-pedition organized in 1909 to discover the depot left by Mylius Erichsen, who, with two companions, perished in Greenland in the previous year. On the completion of their original object the two started to cross Greenland. Green-land. They reached Denmark Firth on May 20, 1910, where they found records left by Erichsen. Nine days later they began their return Journey, and on this they encountered terrible terri-ble hardships. Several of the dogs died and the explorers were compelled com-pelled to shoot those that remained for food. The party reached Shannon Shan-non Island, opposite King William Land, on November 29, and remained there throughout the winter and the following summer, hoping to be picked pick-ed np by a whaler. No vesselB came and they proceeded to Shamrock island, where they spent the following follow-ing winter. In the spring of 1912 they endeavored to make a sledge Journey to Cape Dalton, but had to give it up owing to weakness. They had abandoned all hope of rescue, when they were picked up by a Norwegian Nor-wegian fishing vessel, on July 17 last, and brought to Aalesund. Thence they leave for Copenhagen. Danish Expedition Found Naught. The Danish relief expedition of 1911 returned last summer and all the West Greenland ships came back without Information of Captain Mikelsen. Hope for his safety had, therefore, been practically abandoned. abandon-ed. In that connection it is interesting to note the experience of an intrepid hunter explorer of Cincinnati, Max Fleischman, the multi-millionaire yeast manufacturer, In an attempt to reach Greenland a very few years ago. Fleischman had chartered a ship of his own, and everything that money could provide was at hand for the attempt. But. even so, the coast of Greenland repelled, and though they came within sight they were forced, eventually, to turn back without landing. As Fleischman tells this part the story of his cruise is as follows: "We had reached far enough into the icepack ice-pack by July 20 to note the absence of the mud-colored bergs abounding on its outskirts. Floes increased In area and the, former flat surfaces of these gave place to tumbled masses and rather thin, irregular snow blocks. The latter, heaped one on another, rose to heights of from 20 to B0 feet "The temperature was below freezing freez-ing and the ice stood thick on the rigging, crystal fringes of Icicles hanging from the edges of the floes, adding other touches to the scene. "Bear hunting was the great pastime pas-time at this stage of the voyage. At 7 in the morning, it is remembered, he mate sighted a big bear walking iver some heavy ice to starboai-u, .:nd shambling easily along to the edge of the floe, where he plunged Into the water for a morning dip. "The first shot hit him," Fleischman Fleisch-man says, "as he was leaving the water, wa-ter, about 50 yards from the ship. This as well as the next struck him in the shoulder. He whirled about and then ran rapidly over the Ice, followed by several shots, all of which hit him and knocked him down, but he recovered each time and ran on. Mr. Lohrmonth, at a range of about 300 yards, finally laid him low, but Btill did not kill: The boat put off at once and we had a rough tramp over the floes, climbing hummocks hum-mocks and jumping across the waterways, water-ways, to come within close range. The bear was on his haunches, unable un-able to rise, but moving his head about viciously until I sent a finishing finish-ing shot into his neck. The bear-dog bear-dog was let loose as soon as the boat touched the ice; he took up the trail promptly, and ran around the bear, barking excitedly, as if to make sure of guarding him until .the hunters came up. The bear was a big male, measuring 8 feet 3 inches and standing stand-ing 3 feet 8 Inches at the shoulder. He weighed approximately 1,100 pounds. He was flensed where he lay, for the carcass was too heavy to be brought over the ice to the boat. "Another phase of life here is seal-hunting. seal-hunting. One seal was shot in the water and floated until reached by the boat Experts claim that If a seal be shot, Just as he Is inhaling, the inflation in-flation of the lungs will cause him to float The opposite holds true where the shot comes at the time of exhalation. ex-halation. Others would have it that whether a carcass sink or float depends de-pends on the amount of Its fat supply. sup-ply. Opinions are very divided as to the point "The 21st gave the Laura little headway, a dense ice pack sending the boat to southwest, and forcing her to beat about all day, looking for openings, while the wind jammed the Ice. "July 22, by way of contrast, was an exceptional day for these latitudes. lati-tudes. With a clear view from the crow's nest above, we followed promising prom-ising leads in the heavy Ice toward open waters, whose presence was Bhown from afar by the water sky above. When light falls on a field of pack-ice, It is explained, It Is reflected reflect-ed in the stratum of air above It, and this span of light, called the Iceblink, Ice-blink, Just above the horizon, warns the navigator of the impossibility of penetrating farther. Water spaces, on the other hand, show their presence pres-ence by' dark spots on the horizon, produced by the formation of cloude from ascending mists. These make the so-called water-sky, and faithfully Indicate the leads beneath them. "Such leads through the Ice ending end-ing in snares, we sailed south-southeast all day, in discouraging attempts. Not even a couple of small seals sufficed to raise our Bpirits, though Bhooting seals from aboard ship is filled with spic. The hunter conceals con-ceals himself in the bow, his gun pointed ahead and Just enough of his head showing to allow his taking sight The ship is pointed for the floe where the seals are- lying and- drifts toward the Ice where they may he. "On the 24th, the sun coming out of the fog sufficiently to permit observations, observa-tions, we ' found orjselves 150 miles south of our route. Then, its doleful message given, the fog closed in once more. The barrier of ice fn the sea, the fog, the leads that led but to a wall of ice, would not permit, and the expedition, whose cost is known to its inceptor alone, turned back, with only a glimpse 'cross the ice at the lone, forbidden land of the north." |