STORMY WEATHER

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 12, 15 January 1929, Page 7

STORMY WEATHER

BLOW IN ANTARCTICA.

City Of New York Has

Anxious Time.

LUCKY CHANGE OF WIND

■ CnltM Service* N'EW YORK. January 14. [Bj Mr. Rust*]] Owen. Or.j>Tri{:hT«-<1 IP--t>? the " »w Yc rk " Companr. anO tlip "St. Louie Tost Dispatch. , AllVifMs t«T publication reserved thronphn-uT ih» world. Wireless to tb« " New Yor* York Times.*"] BAY OF \vn.VLi;s. .lannarr ]S. The -itorm reported in my !a>t dipatoh kept np for two days. All hands on the ship and in Litlk America are pleaded thai they weir able to weather it in pood >hape. The ship had fi\e iee anchors out in tlie iw-ficliN T<» M'hi<-h wo are «-ecurcJ and the *ind blew strongly enough to put a ienilic 'train on the anchor line We had to keep a con.-t.am watch o\cr them. It looked, many time*, as if *r would be blown awav from our berth.

The «ale spent it-s force when tinwind went round to iho :-outh HaJ it Wen from the north we could n< \ have stayed where we are ai- the \\a\rwould have thrown the lily of Nev York apaiiift the ice and that have damaged her. Almi there w<»uM have been the danper of an icebei driftinp down with the wind and catching the ship between it and the ice-ticM.

<ireat ice-field* and Wrjrs. from the caM are constantly drifting pa*t us, and we have to be vigilant all the time. The walls of our house in Little America withstood the storm and to-day the roof will be put in its place.

We feel sure, now, that if we hive any wind in the six mouth*' night which reaches a velocity of 150 miles an hour or gusts up to 200 mile* as hour, at recorded by Sir Douglas Maw-ton, our houses will be able to withstand them. There are three more houses to erect, but this is a good-sized one and wjl] berth and mes* at lea=-t 30 men.

BYRD'S FLIGHT PLAN

Wonderful Efficiency Of ladio

Equipment.

WORK AT LITTLE AMERICA

'United Service)

NEW YORK, Januarv 14

[Br < ■•luu.jHuirr Richard Bvrd. Copvriehted I»2S by the - New Tort Tines " Compaax and the •• St. Lnnis Poet Dispatch." jui riphfj- for publication reserved thrmizb- -- ut J** world tireless to the "Sew lork Times." J BAT OF WHALES. January 13.

The ice is now going out of the bay as rapidly as it did with Amundsen, the only other explorer who made his base here. However, we have a much longer distance to carry our supplies than he had.

Our difficulties are greatly increased by the Urge amount of scientific paraphernalia we are taking ashore. Aβ the primary object of our expedition i* scientific we are getting this material to Little America at all costs. It U slow work as we cannot rush the elements. We must be patient, but the spirit oJ the men is eo loyal and enthusiastic that, we feel confident we can beat the unloading and transportation difficult!*'* ahead of us. At any rate we are not behind schedule, as we allowed for the caprices of the Antarctic

The departure of the Eleanor Boiling, our supply ship, from New Zealand ha* been delayed for a day or two or. account of a broken hoisting boom, but she probably will leave within 48 hours. She is loaded with additional scientific equipment and the 'planes Floyd Bennett and Virginia.

Mr. Richard Brophy, bneinest manager of the expedition, who i« with the Eleanor Boiling at Dunedin, has been busy there day and night for a week at the radio key talking to us about supplies. We aft have reason to be glad of his capacity for detail. Although we are 2700 mile* from New Zealand our radio communication is almost like a telephone conversation.

Messrs. Malcolm Hanson, of the na*y. a. radio engineer, Lloyd Berkner. of the Department of Commerce. Edward Mason. Carl Peterson and Lloyd Greulief. from civil life, all radio operators, have done extraordinarily good work. We have found so much use for radio between the ship*. Little America. New Zealand and the United States that the operators have had little sleep.

Matters have now reached a poirst where we must relax somewhat on the wirele«s and pive the operator* a rest. I am very proud of the work whir-h the?* fellows have done. Tn addition to daily usefulness to the expedition they hare gathered scientific dale. Mr Hansen i» losing sleep during bnsy lime* in assembling some of his scientific radio instruments.

In epite of Ihr (wn«tj»nl iiayliplit dow-n here we have little difficulty in rommunicatin? directlr with the Unit yd ?tate*. Yet, «n at LiUlo America, ten miles away, xi e fften ranii'>t he picked up hut «r»> heard "di-oancin;: , * in tl>c United Ptate*. In other words our wave* jump over the β-ea* cloae to as but arc effective at a lonp distance.

A week a; fl a station at Beryen, Korw»T, noticed u» t.hat a .San Francisco •station wo; caliiny u-.

I Our d«->p e and nur dop-team drivers :are jetting well broken in. It i* renaarkahit- that tome of the "greenhorns" have Irarnod to drive the dog*. We are rot jroing to go off "half cocked ,, on our flyinjr. We will not make any flights until we are all eet. We have over a year down here and there is no cause for dartung off befor* we are prepared The Fairchild 'plane i* heing Uken from its crate to-dav.