ADMIRAL BYRD’S RETURN

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22628, 20 July 1935, Page 7

ADMIRAL BYRD’S RETURN

(From Our Own Correspondent.) SAN FRANCISCO, June 24. There seems to be a suspicion in the public mind that Admiral Richard Evelyn Byrd’s adventures in the Antarctic are somewhat related to “ballyhoo,” the American slang word used for too much advertising. This is to be regretted, because disinterested citizens recognise the Admiral’s contributions to science, and the perils of his journeys show a bravery to be commended. The splendid motion picture produced after Admiral Byrd’s first journey proved a financial failure. Kinema houses are crowded for scenes on the silver screen that neither add to the sum total of human knowledge nor to public morals. Consequently there is no reflection on the Admiral’s venture into movieland because the theatres were not full to see man’s efforts to conquer the wastes of ice and snow. The scenes depicted were clear, and gave a fine insight into the wonders of a section of the world unknown to moat people. The newspapers of the United States tell their readers that a third trip to the Antarctic is contemplated by Admiral Byrd. Whether such proves to be the case will depend, in all probability, upon the willingness of an organisation or an individual to provide the necessary funds. It is generally understood that the Admiral is in no position 'to meet the heavy costs. There are many indications to support the assertion that public interest' has waned in respect to these Antarctic explorations. The writer visited two motion picture thteatres during recent days. On each screen was shown Admiral Byrd’s home greeting by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. There was not even the suspicion of applause. This is noteworthy, because after the first journey the Admiral was cheered by kinema audiences.

Feature writers for the papers have written articles on the great difference between Admiral Byrd’s expeditions and the efforts of Arctic and' Antarctic pioneers to achieve the goals they set out for themselves. The discouragements and tremendous hardships experienced by past explorers were contrasted to Admiral Byrd’s up-to-date radio, airplanes, steamers and efficient transportation organisation. It was stated that the great names associated with the silences of the North and South Poles, many of whom never returned to civilisation, w T ere reverenced by men and women everywhere. They had no facilities for self-advertising, and in all likelihood they had no thought in that direction. Grimly they set forth with their dog teams and meagre supplies to accomplish what too often proved to be the impossible. They toiled inch by inch and faced dangers and death. It is natural that there should come to mind the heroism of past years and an inability to give credit to the scientific methods of the present day. During the second trip of Admiral Byrd’s party down the Pacific the radio told of the diversions for the men on board the steamer to relieve the monotony. This gave newspaper critics an, opportunity to compare past and present Arctic and Antarctic expeditions. Admiral Byrd’s second trip included the barquentine ice-breaker Bear of Oakland. All over the United States, and especially on the Pacific coast, the Bear had been “ press agented to death ” for a number of years. Splendidly constructed, the Bear had made so many trips towards the Arctic zone for the Federal Government that it had earned for itself a mellow old age on the mud flat in the Oakland Estuary’across from San Francisco. If ships can think, the Bear was probably disgusted when it was hauled from its repose and headed for a colder climate than the one possessed by California. The admiral’s publicity man did not allow the opportunity to pass to give the Bear’s inclusion sundry reams of newspaper copy. Another factor that left an impress on the public mind was the role of Colonel Jacob Ruppert, of New York, as the financial angel. He sells beer and owns a baseball team, and if there is a man, woman or child in the United States that doesn’t know both accomplishments it certainly isn’t the colonel’s fault. The name of Ruppert in conjunction with that of Byrd seemed a little incongruous, in view of the respective standings of the two men. Time is the leading weekly in circulation in the United States. In its issue of May 20, 1935, it says; “ Colonel Jacob Ruppert, ably press agented brewer and baseball tycoon, contributed 20.000 dollars and some beer to the 1.500.000 dollars Byrd Expedition and had his name put on the supply ship which the Government threw in for one dollar.”

Then Time went on to state that plans for Byrd Antarctic Expedition 111 are in the making, that the admiral has contracts for a year of lectures and a book, that common cold and other germs flourish in Antarctica, that four lonely months were spent in an ice hut studying weather conditions, that fo-r times as much scientific data were acquired as on Byrd Antarctic Expedition I (including information on air currents, meteorology, animal life, geology and general physical characteristics of Marie Byrd Land), a mass of data on cosmic rays, Polar meteorology, astronomy, hydrography, oceanography, terrestrial magnetism, glaciology, botany, bacteriology and biology. Coal and other minerals exist in Antarctica, Admiral Byrd has reported, and he thinks the entire Antarctic Ice Barrier is not afloat, as was commonly supposed, but is partly grounded, and his view is that Antarctica is all one continent, as large as the United States, Mexico, and part of Canada combined. When the President of the United States welcomed Admiral Byrd home he said over a national radio hook-up: “Admiral, I salute you. It is no small thing to have filled in another large portion of the map of the world which had hitherto been a blank. It is an equally great achievement to have added valuable information in at least 22 separate branches of science.”