AGED EXPLORER DIES.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 250, 22 October 1935, Page 7

AGED EXPLORER DIES.

AMERICA'S BELATED HONOURS. WASHINGTON, October 21. The death has occurred of General Adolplius W. Greely, aged 91, who in 1881 made the farthest penetration into the Arctic until then recorded. For that and other explorations he was given belated recognition, being awarded the Congressional Medal of Honour last March.

Adolphue Washington Greely came from Massachusetts and worked his way during the Civil War from volunteer private to brigadier-general. Most of his fame rests upon his Arctic- achievements and on his pioneering in the field of telegraphy. He constructed 2000 miles of telegraphs in Texas, Dakota, and Montana before making his famous Arctic exploration trip 50 years ago, in the course of which his scientific party of 25 reached a point (83deg. 24min) farther north than any previous explorers. They found new land north of Greenland, and crossed Grinnel Land to the Polar Sea. Misfortune overtook them, and two relief expeditions failed to reach them, a third discovering only seven alive at its Cape Sabine base. The rest had died from starvation.

The commander, • Greely, survived and later resumed his military post. During army operations abroad he supervised construction of 1000 miles of telegraph in Porto Rico, SOO miles in Cuba, 250 miles in China, and many miles of lines and cables in Alaska. He was American delegate to numerous telegraphic and wireless conferences in Europe. In 1906 he was given charge of the San Francisco earthquake relief operations. He retired two years later, but represented the United States at the coronation of King George V. in 1911. He was author of many publications on Arctic exploration and heroism, also a number of meteorological handbooks and treatises.