ANTARCTIC STORM

Dominion, Volume 22, Issue 94, 15 January 1929, Page 9

ANTARCTIC STORM

WEATHERED BY BYRD - EXPEDITION CITY OF NEW YORK NOT INJURED WALLS OF HOUSE WITHSTAND HURRICANE (By Russell Owen—Wireless to “New York Times.”) (Rec. January 14, 7.5 p.m.) Bay of Whales, January 12. The storm reported in my last dispatch kept up for two days. All hands at the ship and Little America were pleased that they were able to weather it in good shape. The ship had five ice anchors out in the ice fields, to which we are secured, and the wind blew strong enough to put a terrific strain on the anchor lines. We had to keep constant watch on them. It looked many times as if we would be blown away from our berth. The gale spent its force when the wind got round to the south-east, and had it been from the x north we could not have stayed where we are, as the waves would have thrown the City of New York against the ice and injured her. Also there would have been danger of an iceberg drifting down with the wind and catching the ship between it and the ice field. Great ice fields and bergs from the east are constantly drifting by us and we have to be vigilant all the time.

The walls of our house at Little . America withstood the storm, and to- , day the roof will be put in place. We ; feel sure now that if we have any wind . during the six months’ night up to 150 ’ miles an hour or gusts up to 200 miles '• an hour, as recorded by Sir Douglas • Mawson, that the houses will be able to withstand them. There are three ’ more houses to erect, but this one is ‘ good sized and will berth and mess at ■ least thirty men. i • WONDERFUL RADIO WORK 1 ■ GOOD COMMUNICATION WITH AMERICA (Rec. January 14, 11.25 p.m.) Bay of Whales, January 13. The ice is going out of the Bay rapidly, as it did with Captain Amundsen, the only other explorer who made his base here, but we have a much longer distance to carry our supplies than he did. Our difficulties are greatly increased by the large amount of scientific paraphernalia wer are taking ashore. Since the primary object of the expedition is scientific, we are getting this material to Little America at all costs. • - . It is slow work, as we cannot rush the elements. We must be patient, but the spirit of the men is so loyal and enthusiastic that we feel confident that we can beat the unloading and- transportation difficulties ahead of us. At any rate, we are not behind the schedule, as we allowed for the caprices of the Antarctic. . ; The departure of the Eleanor Bolling, the supply ship, from New Zealand, has been delayed a day or two on account of a broken hoisting boom, but she will probably leave within 48 hours. . She is loaded with additional scientific equipment, and the ’planes Floyd-Bennett and Virginia. Mr.- Richard Brophy, the expedition’s business manager, with the Eleanor Bolling at Dunedin, has been on the job there day and night for a week at the radio key talking to us about supplies. We all have reasons to be glad of his capacity for detail. Although we are 2700 miles from New Zealand our radio communication is almost like a telephone conversation. Malcolm Hansen, the Navy radio engineer, Lloyd Berk'ner, of the Department of Commerce, Edward Manson, Carl Peterson and Lloyd Grenlief, from civil life, are all radio operators, and have done extraordinarily good work. We have found so much use for radio between the ships, Little America, New Zealand and the United States, that the operators have had little sleep. It has reached a point where we must let up somewhat on the radio and give them a rest. I am very proud of the work these fellows have done. In addition to their daily usefulness to the expedition they have gathered scientific data, and Hansen is losing sleep during the busy times assembling some of his scientific radio instruments. Despite the constant daylight down here, we have little difficulty in communicating directly with the United States. Yet up at Little America, ten miles away, we often cannot be picked up, but are heard distancing in the United States. In other words, our waves jump over areas close to us, but are effective at long distance. A week ago Bergen, Norway, notified us that San Francisco was calling us. The dog team drivers are getting well broken in. It is remarkable that some of the greenhorns have learned to drive the dogs. We are not going to go off halfcooked on our flying. We will not make any flights until we are all set. We have over a year down here, and there is no cause for dashing off before we are prepared. The Fairchild ’plane is being uncrated to-day. [Copyrighted 1928 by “New York Times’” Company and "St. Louis Post-Dispatch ” ( All rights for publication reserved throughout the world.] '