WEYPRECHT’S PLAN FOR SYNCHRONOUS OBSERVATIONS.
THE GREELY EXPEDITION
On the 18th September, 1875, Lieutenant Weyprecht, the colleague of
Lieutenant Payer when Franz Josef Land was discovered, delivered an
address to a meeting of German savants at Gratz in which he urged that,
in the greed for discovery, scientific research was often neglected.
The object of Arctic expeditions, he said, should be a nobler one
than mapping and naming ice-bound coasts, or reaching a higher
latitude than a predecessor. The North Pole, he held, had no greater
significance for science than any other point in the higher latitudes.
His contention was that meteorological and magnetic observations, to be
really valuable to science, must be synchronous, and that they must be
taken at selected stations round the Arctic regions, the instruments
identical, the instructions identical, and the observations synchronous
for at least a year.
Lieutenant Weyprecht’s views received respectful attention, and were
adopted by an international polar conference at Hamburg in 1879 and by
another at St Petersburg in 1882. Proposals were then made to all the
countries likely to take part, and finally the following arrangements
were made to carry out Weyprecht’s scheme.
The United States agreed to station Lieutenant Ray at Point Barrow, and
Lieutenant Greely at Lady Franklin Bay, in Smith Sound. The Austrians
sent Captain Wohlgemuth to Jan Mayen Island, and the Germans Dr Giese
to Cumberland Inlet in Davis Strait. England arranged for observations
to be taken at Fort Rae on the Great Slave Lake, Russia established
stations at Novaya Zemlya and at the mouth of the Lena, and the Danes
sent Dr Paulsen to Godthaab in Greenland. The Swedes were represented
by Dr Ekholm at Ice Fjord in Spitsbergen, and the Norwegians observed
at the Alten Fjord. The Dutch intended to establish a station at Port
Dickson in Siberia, but unfortunately the vessel conveying the observer
and his instruments was wrecked. The synchronous observations were
commenced at these stations in the summer of 1882, and continued for a
year, in accordance with the previously arranged plan.
One of these expeditions, the only one which concerns our subject,
combined geographical discovery with the main object--that sent up
Smith Sound by the United States. It was composed entirely of officers
and men of the army, under the command of Lieutenant Greely of the
Signal Corps. Under him the officers were Lieutenants Kislingbury
and Lockwood, and Dr Pavy as surgeon and naturalist. There were five
sergeants belonging to the signal corps, three of infantry, and two of
cavalry, altogether ten sergeants, one corporal, nine privates, and two
Eskimo hunters. The steamer _Proteus_ was hired to land the party at
Lady Franklin Bay, the _Discovery’s_ winter quarters. This was effected
on August 18th, 1881, and as soon as the stores and provisions were
landed and the house erected, the _Proteus_ departed.
It was arranged that the _Proteus_ should return to bring the observers
home in the summer of 1882, but no other precaution was taken. It was
quite possible that a vessel might find it impracticable to reach
Lady Franklin Bay owing to ice conditions, or that she might founder,
as actually happened. The commander of the expedition ought to have
insisted upon a depôt being landed at Cape Sabine, or some other point
in Smith Sound, complete in all respects for 24 men for nine months;
such a depôt as Captain Kellett left at Melville Island. The neglect of
this precaution was disastrous.
The house at Lady Franklin Bay, which was named Conger, was
comfortable, and the various observations, meteorological, magnetic,
pendulum, and tidal were commenced. But unfortunately the personnel of
the expedition did not form a very united family. There was resistance
to the Commander’s instructions for winter routine. Lieutenant
Kislingbury resigned his appointment in the expedition and wished to
return, but was too late. He remained as a volunteer. The surgeon was
frequently insubordinate and was at last put under arrest, and later
there was trouble with one of the sergeants named Cross. Lieutenant
Lockwood was the life and soul of the expedition. He undertook short
journeys in the autumn, laying out depôts, and upwards of a hundred
musk oxen were seen, and many shot, so that fresh meat could be served
out three times a week. During the dark winter months Lieutenant
Lockwood edited a paper entitled _The Arctic Moon_, with illustrations
by himself.
An expedition along the north coast of Greenland had been decided upon,
and during March Lieutenant Lockwood undertook a preliminary journey
across the channel to Thank God Harbour, visiting Hall’s grave. A depôt
was also placed at Cape Sumner.
On the 2nd April Lockwood’s expedition started, consisting of the
dog-sledge _Antoinette_ with a team of eight dogs, and some supporting
sledges. At Cape Britannia on the north coast of Greenland, near
Beaumont’s furthest, all the supporting sledges were sent back, a depôt
was left, and on April 30th Lockwood proceeded with Sergeant Brainard
and the Eskimo Frederick. The sledge was loaded with 25 days’ rations
for three persons weighing 230 lb., 300 lb. of dog pemmican, constant
weights 176 lb., the sledge itself 80 lb., total 786 lb. As they
advanced the snow became soft, and a portion of the load was thrown
off, to be picked up on the return journey. The ice foot further on
was smooth and the dogs went at a trot, the men sitting on the sledge
by turns. On the 14th May they reached their furthest point, which was
called Lockwood Island. On the 15th observations were taken, the result
being Lat. 83° 24′ N., Long. 40° 46′ 30″ W. The return was without
incident, and Conger was reached June 1st. The dogs had done well and
enabled a good journey of two months to be made.
Lockwood’s coast-line extends for 110 miles of longitude, or altogether
150 miles. It consists of a succession of high, rocky, and precipitous
promontories, with intervening inlets, and a mass of snow-clad
mountains inland. Along the shore was what was called a tidal crack,
varying in width, supposed to be caused by the motion of the polar
pack. Lieutenant Greely rightly concluded from the regularity of the
surface in the fjords or inlets, that this was really the north coast
of Greenland, and not a separate land as later alleged by Peary.
Greely himself started on an expedition inland on June 26th, and this
journey, combined with a shorter one in the spring, resulted in the
discovery of an extensive lake, and enabled him to obtain a clear
idea of this part of the great island, his furthest point being 175
miles from Conger. A number of Eskimo bone implements and remains of
sledges, of considerable antiquity, were found and brought back. But
now began the first hint of the misfortunes that were to befall them.
The _Proteus_, the relief vessel which was to bring the expedition
home, was anxiously expected but never arrived, and a second winter had
therefore to be faced.
On April 25th, 1883, Lieutenant Lockwood started for a month’s
exploration westward. He succeeded in crossing the island to a fjord
on the west coast to which he gave the name of Greely, and down this
he and Sergeant Brainard travelled for 25 miles. To the south of the
fjord the country appeared to be covered by an immense ice-cap with an
unbroken series of cliffs from 125 to 200 feet in height.
It was decided to commence a retreat on the 18th August, with a steam
launch, a whale-boat, and two English ice-boats, carrying 50 days’
provisions, to take them to Cape Dobbin, where they expected to find a
ship. All the records of observations as well as the reports of sledge
journeys were placed in tin cases carefully soldered. They picked up
the English depôt at Cape Collinson (240 rations of meat and 120 of
bread) and reached Cape Hawke with 60 days’ provisions. On October 2nd
they landed at Wade Point with 35 days’ food for 25 men. All the boats,
except one ice-boat, had been abandoned. On the 9th Sergeant Rice
arrived at Cape Sabine and obtained news. The _Proteus_ had foundered
on the 23rd July, and her commander Lieutenant Garlington and crew had
escaped to the east coast. The English depôt was found. The members
of the expedition reached Cape Sabine and built a hut with the boat
for a roof. Greely was obliged, on November 1st, to reduce the daily
rations to the smallest amount that would support life--meat 4 oz.
and biscuit 6 oz., altogether a total of only 14¼ oz. There were some
instances of theft of rum and provisions, but not many. In January
Sergeant Cross died. Though some of the party were indefatigable in
searching for game they were not fortunate, the bag consisting only of
one small seal, one bear, twenty-four foxes, fourteen ptarmigan and
sixty dovekies. The last issue of rations was on May 24th, after which
the deaths from starvation began, though during May Sergeant Brainard
had managed to get 475 lb. of shrimps and 81 lb. of sea-weed. That
gallant and loyal soldier, James Lockwood, died on the 9th April, Dr
Pavy on the 16th, and Kislingbury on the 1st June. Greely was left
without an officer. All the non-commissioned officers, except Brainard,
fell victims of starvation, as well as six of the privates and the two
Eskimos. Private Henry had been detected stealing bacon, and afterwards
strips of leather. He was stronger than any of the others, and they
became frightened of him, so Lieutenant Greely ordered him to be shot.
This was done on June 6th, 1884. The six survivors, Greely, Brainard,
Connell, Long, Fredericks, and Biederlich, were reduced to the very
last extremity when on June 22nd a relief vessel arrived, commanded by
Captain Sedley, and saved them.
Greely was in a most difficult position during the expedition owing to
the insubordination of two out of three of his officers, which set a
bad example to the men. There were possibly faults on both sides, and
Greely may have been injudicious, but he conducted an exceptionally
arduous and difficult service with ability and consideration for
others, and to the very last did not fail in his duty to those
dependent upon him.
Lieutenant (now General) Greely succeeded in bringing back the most
valuable part of his work. It is published in two large quarto volumes
which are admirably edited (Washington, 1888). The work opens with
Greely’s lucid and thoroughly honest report, and contains the reports
and diaries of all the sledge travellers, and the meteorological,
tidal, and magnetic observations during the whole sojourn in Lady
Franklin Bay.
Lieutenant P. H. Ray carried out the Weyprecht scheme at Point Barrow
with diligence and ability. His results, contained in a large quarto
volume (Washington, 1885), in addition to the narrative, comprise
the meteorological, magnetic, and tidal observations, together with
ethnographical and linguistic studies of the natives of Point Barrow.