BYRD’S RETURN

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXIV, 12 March 1930, Page 5

BYRD’S RETURN

IN THE LAND OF THE LIVING LEADER INTERVIEWED (By Telegraph—Press Association) DUNEDIN", _ 10th March. Rear-Admiral Byrd, in an interview on board the City of New York on the way up the harbour, expressed the keen pleasure of his men and himself at once more being in the land of the living. For himself lie could say that he had enjoyed every moment spent in tiie Antarctic, and if some of liis companions had longed for home at times it was possibly because the call of tho snow and ice in their veins was not as imperative as the urge which drew him to those regions. He had always found a peculiar appeal in the lure of the frozen extremities of tho earth, .and he supposed that lie always would. Their return to Dunedin reminded them of the great debt to the people of this city and to New Zealand generally for the great courtesy and kindness that had been extended .p their, from tho first day they had landed on these shores.

“We are deeply sensible of the fact,” he remarked, “that whatever measure of success we have achieved is due very largely to the assistance that various organisations in the Dominion have given us; nor will we allow our indebtedness in this connection to pass unnoticed when we return to our country. New Zealand has treated us in a manner which none of us will ever forget, and though I consider that some more formal and official expression of. appreciation, is called for, 1 desire to take this opportunity of conveying to your wonderful little country our heartfelt thanks.”. Of the success of-the expedition from the various scientific viewpoints, RearAdmiral Byrd, said he could say very little offhand. What, results had been secured by the different specialists were very largely obscured from the lay gaze by mountains of technical detail through which it was impossible to wade under the existing circumstances, but he was ' proud to be able to say that the venture achieved everything whereunto it was sent. Their mission was accomplished, and what was even more satisfying was the fact that they had exceeded their most sanguine expectations. They had a rather formidable programme ahead of them at the outset, but he had had supreme faith in the’ personnel'of the expedition, so that he had not anticipated failure unless they had encountered unforeseen cir-

cumstances. Asked if ho could indicate along general lines some of the particular branches of science which might be expected to benefit from the data which the pictorial and other records and observations covered, Rear-Admiral Byrd said that meteorology was one of the chief of them. Biological studies in the Antarctic had. proved very fruitful, and the experts in this line would have a,great deal, of interesting information to impart in regard to the peculiar forms of life that existed in certain parts of the Polar continent. Seal species, whales, petrels, skuagulls, and penguins had all been made the subject of investigations, and although a great deal of the observations recorded broke no very new ground, they shed new light on some very important aspects of the Antarctic. Botamcally the expedition had been fruitless, the only samples of flora encountered being small and for most part uninteresting growth of lichen. The ice physicist had a busy time in the south, and a great deal, of. entirely new geological data had been secured.