BEGINNING THE VOYAGE.
I determined to build a vessel of such strength and equipment as could
not fail, with ordinary good fortune, to carry us through the greatest
dangers in Arctic navigation. Short of being absolutely frozen in the
ice, I hoped to reach the pole itself, if there should be sufficient
water to float us. The vessel, which I named the _Polar King_,
although small in size was very strong and compact. Her length was 150
feet and her width amidships 50 feet. Her frames and planking were
made of well-seasoned oak. The outer planking was sheathed in steel
plates from four to six inches in thickness. This would protect us
from the edges of the ancient ice that might otherwise cut into the
planking and so destroy the vessel.
The ship was armed as follows: A colossal terrorite gun that stood in
the centre of the deck, whose 250-pound shell of explosive terrorite
was fired by a charge of gunpowder without exploding the terrorite
while leaving the gun. This was to destroy icebergs and heavy
pack-ice. A battery of twelve 100-pounder terrorite guns, with shells
also fired with powder. All shells would explode by percussion in
striking the object aimed at. A battery of six guns of the Gatling
type, to repel boarding parties in case we reached a hostile country.
There was also an armory of magazine rifles, revolvers, cutlasses,
etc., as well as 50 tons of gunpowder, terrorite, and revolver-rifle
cartridges.
The ship was driven by steam, the triple-expansion engine being
500-horse power and the rate of speed twenty-five miles an hour. By an
important improvement on the steam engine, invented by myself, one ton
of coal did the work of 50 tons without such improvement. The bunkers
held 250 tons of coal, which was thus equal to 12,500 tons in any
other vessel. There was also an auxiliary engine for working the
pumps, electric dynamo, cargo, anchors, etc. One of the most useful
fittings was the apparatus that both heated the ship and condensed the
sea water for consumption on board ship, and for feeding the boilers.
The ship's company was as follows:
OFFICERS.
Lexington White, Commander of the Expedition.
Captain, William Wallace.
First Officer Renwick, Navigating Lieutenant.
Second Officer Austin, Captain of the terrorite gun.
Third Officer Haddock, Captain of the main deck battery.
SCIENTIFIC STAFF.
Professor Rackiron, Electrician and Inventor.
Professor Starbottle, Astronomer.
Professor Goldrock, Naturalist.
Doctor Merryferry, Ship's Physician.
PETTY OFFICERS.
Master-at-Arms Flathootly.
First Engineer Douglass.
Second Engineer Anthoney.
Pilot Rowe.
Carpenter Martin.
Painter Hereward.
Boatswain Dunbar.
Ninety-five able-bodied seamen, including mechanics, gunners,
cooks, tailors, stokers, etc.
Total of ship's company, 110 souls.
Believing in the absolute certainty of discovering the pole and our
consequent fame, I had included in the ship's stores a special
triumphal outfit for both officers and sailors. This consisted of a
Viking helmet of polished brass surmounted by the figure of a
silver-plated polar bear, to be worn by both officers and sailors. For
the officers a uniform of navy-blue cloth was provided, consisting of
frock coat embroidered with a profusion of gold striping on shoulders
and sleeves, and gold-striped pantaloons. For each sailor there was
provided a uniform consisting of outer navy-blue cloth jacket, with
inner blue serge jacket, having the figure of a globe embroidered in
gold on the breast of the latter, surmounted by the figure of a polar
bear in silver. Each officer and sailor was armed with a cutlass
having the figure of a polar bear in silver-plated brass surmounting
the hilt. This was the gala dress, but for every-day use the entire
company was supplied with the usual Arctic outfit to withstand the
terrible climate of high latitudes.
Foreseeing the necessity of pure air and freedom from damp
surroundings, I had the men's berths built on the spar deck, contrary
to the usual custom. The spar deck was entirely covered by a hurricane
deck, thus giving complete protection from cold and the stormy weather
we would be sure to encounter on the voyage.
Our only cargo consisted of provisions, ship's stores, ammunition,
coal, and a large stock of chemical batteries and a dynamo for
furnishing electricity to light the ship. We also shipped largely of
materials to manufacture shells for the terrorite guns.
The list of stores included an ample supply of tea, coffee, canned
milk, butter, pickles, canned meats, flour, beans, peas, pork,
molasses, corn, onions, potatoes, cheese, prunes, pemmican, rice,
canned fowl, fish, pears, peaches, sugar, carrots, etc.
The refrigerator contained a large quantity of fresh beef, mutton,
veal, etc. We brought no luxuries except a few barrels of rum for
special occasion or accidents. Exposure and hard work will make the
plainest food seem a banquet.
Thus fully equipped, the _Polar King_ quietly left the Atlantic Basin
in Brooklyn, N. Y., ostensibly on a voyage to Australia. The
newspapers contained brief notices to the effect that Lexington White,
a gentleman of fortune, had left New York for a voyage to Australia
and the Southern Ocean, via Cape Horn, and would be gone for two
years.
We left on New Year's Day, and had our first experience of a polar
pack in New York Bay, which was thickly covered with crowded ice.
Gaining the open water, we soon left the ice behind, and, after a
month's steady steaming, entered the Straits of Magellan, having
touched at Monte Video for supplies and water.
Leaving the Straits we entered the Pacific Ocean, steering north.
Touching at Valparaiso, we sailed on without a break until we arrived
at Sitka, Alaska, on the 1st of March.
Receiving our final stores at Sitka, the vessel at once put to sea
again, and in a week reached Behring Strait and entered the Arctic
Ocean. I ordered the entire company to put on their Arctic clothing,
consisting of double suits of underclothing, three pairs of socks,
ordinary wool suits, over which were heavy furs, fur helmets,
moccasins and Labrador boots.
All through the Straits we had encountered ice, and after we had
sailed two days in the Arctic Sea, a hurricane from the northwest
smote us, driving us eastward over the 165th parallel, north of
Alaska. We were surrounded with whirlwinds of snow frozen as hard as
hail. We experienced the benefit of having our decks covered with a
steel shell. There was plenty of room for the men to exercise on deck
shielded from the pitiless storm that drove the snow like a storm of
gravel before it. Exposure to such a blizzard meant frost-bite,
perhaps death. The outside temperature was 40 below zero, the inside
temperature 40 above zero, cold enough to make the men digest an
Arctic diet.
We kept the prow of the ship to the storm, and every wave that washed
over us made thicker our cuirass of ice. It was gratifying to note the
contrast between our comfortable quarters and the howling desolation
around us.
While waiting for the storm to subside we had leisure to speculate on
the chances of success in discovering the pole.
Captain Wallace had caused to be put up in each of our four cabins the
following tables of Arctic progress made since Hudson's voyage in
1607:
RECORD OF HIGHEST LATITUDES REACHED.
Hudson 80' 23" in 1607
Phipps 80' 48" in 1773
Scoresby 81' 12" in 1806
Payer 82' 07" in 1872
Meyer 82' 09" in 1871
Parry 82' 45" in 1827
Aldrich 83' 07" in 1876
Markham 83' 20" in 1876
Lockwood 83' 24" in 1883
"Does it not seem strange," said I, "that nearly three hundred years
of naval progress and inventive skill can produce no better record in
polar discovery than this? With all our skill and experience we have
only distanced the heroic Hudson three degrees; that is one degree for
every hundred years. At this rate of progress the pole may be
discovered in the year 2600."
"It is a record of naval imbecility," said the captain; "there is no
reason why our expedition cannot at least touch the 85th degree. That
would be doing the work of two hundred years in as many days."
"Why not do the work of the next 700 years while we are at it?" said
Professor Rackiron. "Let us take the ship as far as we can go and then
bundle our dogs and a few of the best men into the balloon and finish
a job that the biggest governments on earth are unable to do."
"That's precisely what we've come here for," said I, "but we must have
prudence as well as boldness, so as not to throw away our lives
unnecessarily. In any case we will beat the record ere we return."