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Show M l jj THE SOUTH POLE H , J )' DISCOVERY H ' ;i H Of what slgulflcnnco la this much- H j hcrnlded dlbcovcry of the South I'ol.', H ' anyhow? Will It rcduco tho prlco o iaIH i coi', or increase the demand for ori- 11 .iitnl rugs? 1b It going to furnish a U tolution of the problem of our dlmln- H ; Ihhlng timber supply, or la. It to fur B I )ilth us with u second edition of the 1 I Cook-l'oary gabfest, In tho .way of n M I .Scolt-AmundBcn controversy? H Such In substance Is tho nnturo of M ' ! tho discussion which tho recent mi- B ' nouncoment of tho dlBCovcry of 'i tho H South Polo by tho Norwcglon, Captain U Iloald Amundson, on Dccomber 14th H last, has occasioned. As to tho real M value of tho discovery opinions dlf- m I j for. Somo emphasizing tho grcal lm- M i portnnce of accurato determination of m ' "thb'condltloni ('prevailing at tho ox- itromotlcs of our globo other sarcast- Ically roferlng to It as "not amount- M j )ng to n hilt of beans." M To say tho least It gives , occasion M for thought. Within tho loot two B ' .years tho North and South Poles fl thavo been reached. Either task liav- H , lng baffled all attempts of past year. M j It haB disclosed tho fact that whllo H tho North Pole lies In a great arctic B ' basin, hundreds of miles ' from land, M I tho South Pole Is situated on n great H Ice-capped continent. H From this lnttcr fact some author- m ' Hies draw tho Inference that within H this Immense Bcctlon of enrth thero H may b'o contained vast deposltB of H coal and mineinl wealth Ruch ns will H yet OBtonlsh tho world. And why H ' not? Alaska lmB revealed to the H world a vast trcasurcr-hoiiHo of gold, and other of tho precious metals, B surely tho glacTnl conditions of tho HHJ nntnrtlc nro equally fnvornblo for the HHJ foundation of bucIi deposits. BHJ . Many great and startling surprls- H es have come to us within tho lust H deendo nnd It Is no uhuso of our credulity to prognosticate another "gold stnmpcdo" with tho South Polo ns Its objective. From tho strictly scientific viewpoint view-point It mnrks an era of wonderful achievement, Professor T. C. Chamberlain, Cham-berlain, of tho University of Chicago says: "A problem that has confronted the scientific world from tho earliest days Is tho matter of longtlmo wen-thor wen-thor piedlctlon. It may bo seen rendlly that If It becomes possible to prodlct tho advent of storms accurately accur-ately nnd weeks In advance It will be of Immenso commercial vnluo to tho world. "Through tho discovery of tho nature na-ture of tho territory at tho South Polo, the wind movements nnd tho general atmospheric conditions, It will become posslblo to make a complete com-plete map of the wind movements over tho face of tho globe. "This will enable scientists to trace a storm from tho point It gathers, through tho path It takes and until its force Is spent." Hut setting asldo alt valuo uat might accrue ns a result of tho nsw ly revealed conditions of tho pole, tho real essence of tho achievement lies in tho fact that tho world has discovered dis-covered a now man. Roald Amundsen, tho Norwegian discoverer. Quietly, patiently, and with magnificent courage cour-age ho hns done his work. With nny of the bombnst and bigotry that has characterized others of tho so-called discoverers, and with a manifestation of fairness and consideration that Is commcudnblo he hns been tho first mnn to discover nnd nnvlgato tho Northwest Passage, nnd now ho ng-aln ng-aln appears us tho discoverer of the cuith'fl southern apex. After a brief lectin o through Australlln he will again ag-ain set out for tho arctic circle, nnd what revelations ho tuny yet glvo tho world only tho future will determine. |