ARCTIC DISCOVERY.

Press, Volume XLIX, Issue 14822, 13 November 1913, Page 13

ARCTIC DISCOVERY.

TO THE EDITOR OP "THE PEKS3." •*_*>'". —In your issue of to-day's dato you print a communication from your San Francisco correspondent giving an account of the discovery of a largo tract of land in the Arctic Ocean north of Western Siberia, by Commander Wilkitzky. A brief cablegram referring to -tho samo discovery appeared a few weeks ago. Tho vagueness of your correspondent s description, and the grav 1 . discrepancies contained in it, ronder it somewhat difficult to obtain an accurate \v-u ■■ i the ro l )ort tf Commander HUKitz-y upon his discovery. It is clear however, that tho new land cannot bo oa lied a "new continent," nor can it bo even approximately "as large aaUreouland. •' It is stated to be about 000 miles north of Asia, moro specifically m lat. Sldeg. N., long. 10-Jdeg. E. 1 his i» contradicted, however, by the two assertions firstly, that the expedi-. tion cruised along the land in a northwesterly direction to lat. 81d_~. N., ong. OGdcg. E.; and, secondly, that on it» icturn in a south-easterly direction it found tiie coast turn to tho uorthVn„ '"I I , at -4, d<s S- N -> Ion S- 10-ldeg. ._: Now. lat 79dog. N., long? Kkk'eg E., is a point just about 100 miles (not 500 ™_«V Z r u l , of °-»P 6 Chel>- B kin. tho most northerly point of Asia. Tho ex. pedition 1 olio wed the newly-discpvered •oast in an easterly direction. Where the coast turned to tho south again your correspondent does not say, but as the expedition was forced off the IV U i £ lat " 7f3dc «' 40min -> it is clear tha. there was a well-marked southerly trend in the eoast--|ine someivhere. The longitude at which tho .expedition lost wi 3 r d 1S nofc r stalod > hniit could not havo been as far east m long. MOdea. fl.';*. v l ' ■ Vl - S . ab( >«t in this longitude berVs<k nSO " in }. 9 Fram - - n September,, 1893 crossed the parallel of 7(ideg. G«". lm ' r^ OW ' f '' om ***■ 81 deg- N., lon£. long. 186<.leg. fi is,about 600 miles! (C-icenland is above 1600 miles "long from north to south, and nearly 800 miles across at its greatest width). *: m ' the ra-TO began to drift weati\n-? ,y before reaching long. 140deg E. She drifted norti? of tfio land along its whole length but Nans-en had no reason to suspect land to tho south of him. The tram passed at a distance of about 140 miles from h lt . 81dj.g. N.. long %deg. .1- so Unit from tt»_ point tit© law" could not he moro than about 300 Wiles vido. Sho passed about 220 m,les trom lat 7Qdeg. X., long. l().deg. ' -j.. while further oast her course comes Si 0 " s *", a-nd -loser to that of Commander Wilkitzky s expedition. On tho whole, it looks as if the land discovered is comparable m size with Spitsbergen rather than with Greenland. It cannot bo called "tho last great discovery ot lands possible op tho globe." Tho unoxplored ocean north of Eastern ■Siberia and Alaska is of much "greater extent than that between Western Siberia and „tho track of tho Fram/* dnit, in which tho new discovery* is placed. And as Stefansson is pursuing his researches in a region somo thou* 2?".YM of mi,es lr <> _ Commander WiiKiUky's discovery, ho can hardly be said to have been beaten by him at any rate in the sense in whioli Scott was beaten by Amundsen. I have, so far assumed that Commander Wilkitzky •• actually traced a coastline over a direct distance of 600 roi'«_- That is not imnossiblo of belief; . but there is much to be said, if space would allow, for tho attitude of surprise, tempered by scepticism, that Ims i been taken up by the American gee- ' granbers. In tho meantime, all r_r- ! -on« interested j n Arptic Rjcolorat'on i wi'l wait eagerly for more definite details as to Commander Wiikjtzky's d's- : covei-y.—Yours, etc.. - THOMAS. W. ROWE. Christchurch, November 12. 11 -i i