BYRD'S POLAR SHIP

Evening Post, Volume CXVI, Issue 135, 5 December 1933, Page 7

BYRD'S POLAR SHIP

NAMED AFTER BACKER

OUTFITTING THE VENTURE

The flagship that will take Boar Admiral Eichard E. Byrd on his second Antarctic expedition has been namecl the Jacob Euppert in, honour of-Colonel Jacob Euppert, brewer and basebaH club owner, who is one of the chief sponsors of the undertaking, says th* "Christian. Science Monitor."

In an announcement from his headquarters before leaving America Admiral Byrd . said, he had changed the name of the flagship from Pacific to Jacob Euppcrt so that Mr. Support's name might- bo carried into the South Polo region, although ho was unable to accompany the expedition personally. With this'announcement Colonel Buppert, millionaire brewer, baseball magnate, and philanthropist, once more stepped into tho headlines. As a. brewer Colonel' Euppcrt set a standard for law observance during the yeara of Prohibition. To him the Eighteenth Amendment was a law to be respected.

But it is as a backer of winners that, Colonel Euppert attracted the greatest attention. He picked up the New York Yankees when they' were floundering in the depths of the American Baseball League and led them to seven league championships in thirteen years. And—he bought Babe Euth. Now he is backing Admiral Byrd in his Polar thrust. WHY A BACKER? "But why a backer?" someone asks. There has been so much talk of donated aeroplanes, of free supplies of food and fuel, natural scientists furnished by various organisations bearing their own instruments and outfits, that to a lot of people it would seem that all Admiral Byrd has to do is east off his lines and sail. But there is> more to exploration parties than that. Eegardless of all donated supplies and equipment there are a thousand items of expense that the leader of the expedition must meet.

"Pretty soft," the newspaper reader remarks when he hears that some aeroplane company has just given an aeroplane to Admiral Byrd. But there are details 'to the fitting of the aeroplane for Polar flying that are not attended to by the maker.- A pair of skis large enough for a large aeroplano must be carefully constructed of tho best possible stock, involving an expenditure of some 1500 dollars. Pon«' toons for the same ship for use in open, water add another few thousand to the cost of the aeroplane. One hears of ships sdld to the expedition for ridiculous prices*l without ever stopping to consider that the ship so delivered is but a framework upon which must bo distributed a small fortune in fittings and instruments. Tho Pacific Fir, to take an example, had to be completely refitted and overhauled for duty in seas where ice is a constant menace. Tho expedition must bo thoroughly equipped with all the instruments which the specialists in yarious lines will need. All of them are expensive. And not all of them are donated.. . EXPENSES GO ON. Then, even after the ships have been filled with supplies of food and fuel, expenses go on. There will be port charges. There will bo an expenditure of several thousand dollars to get them through the Panama Canal, to mention but one item. Wherever they go expenses will plough along in their wake. If the leader of the expedition is not himself a multi-millionaire he must look for aid from those financially able to offer it. Thus from the moment the first plans for the expedition are laid the greatest hazards are not those of ice-strewn. seas. The most trying experiences are' not in the vharsh monotony of the long Antarctic night but are those to be overcome before the ships ever leave the harbour. It is difficult enough, even in times of national '.. prosperity, to raise-the large sums necessary to outfit such ail expedition. lit'times 4ike the present, when financial stringency hampers so many worthy causes, the task becomes almost impossible. The breach1 between plans and the possibility of their fulfilment can only be filled by financial aid.

It is into such a breach that Colonel Euppert has stepped. He comes to the Byrd Antarctic Expedition, with the reputation as a backer ; of winners. In gaining such, aid Admiral Byrd would ?eem to have cast loose the first' of the lines that hold him to his dock. The hope that follows the expedition is that Colonel Buppert haa.; backed another ■winner. ■ \