NEW AREAS CLAIMED

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 18920, 23 January 1936, Page 5

NEW AREAS CLAIMED

ELLSWORTH'S FLIGHT

EPIC PERIOD REVIEWED

"GOOD TO BE ALIVE"

Elec. Tel. Copyright—United Press Assn.) NEW YORK, Jan. 21.

A message from Mr. Lincoln Ellsworth, who was rescued from Little America by the Discovery II after his flight across the Antarctic continent, states :

"Once more aboard the Wyatt Earp

Among those whom I wish to thank for sticking to the expedition through the last three years of doubt and trial, are Sir Hubert Wilkins, an efficient adviser, and without whose assistance the flight could never have been made.

"Going back over the flight, I can say I felt supremely happy in my share of the opportunity of unveiling the continent. For the first time in human history, at 10.15 p.m. G.M.T. on November 23," we landed at 103.10 deg. W. and 79.125 deg. S. We stood on the only unclaimed land in the Antarctic, in the whole world, in fact. With the permission, of the State Department, I raised the American flag, and named this area, situated between Hearst Land on the one side, and Marie Byrd Land on the other, or between meridians 80 and 120,

James Ellsworth Land, after my father, and the plateau on which we were, the Hollick Kenyon plateau. "After a 50-minute flight on November 24, we came down again and waited out there all day in a blizzard, during which time we were huddled in sleeping bags, unable to sleep because of the wind, which seemed momentarily about to pick us up with our tents, but did not. "Several days afterwards, with great difficulty, we dug the machine out and made another flight for 175 minutes and descended to camp on a brilliant evening, with the snow sparkling like jewels. It was good to be alive, especially as we were only 160 miles from our destination. SUN STRANGELY HOT "Next morning we took off again to find Roosevelt Island, 16 miles from the Bay of Whales. This was difficult, due to two conflicting maps which we had, but soon the Polar Star came down, completely out of petrol. We camped and weighed down our skis with our equipment. We knew we were not far from Little America, and one day Mr. Kenyon, standing on the wing of the aeroplane, saw the snow-covered houses and the wind generator of Little America. "On December 9 we packed our hand sleighs, and three weeks' rations, and started out, [but, after t-'uvtlt'nj 15 miles, found not Little America, but an ice pinnacle.

"We returned for our tent and sextant. The sun was strangely hot, and we sweated for the next two days. We travelled at night at two miles an hour. Next night I discovered I had a frost-bitten toe which bothered me all the rest of the journey;

"In the fog we passed Little America by 15 miles to the north, finding the Ross Sea, and had to trudge back. We reached Little America 22 days after leaving Dundee Island. We opened the skylight of the radio shack and made ourselves at home. We found fuel, hard tack, bully beef, flour and jams, and we had plum pudding for Christmas." "Since the British, Australian and New Zealand Government's so kindly directed the Discovery to the Bay of Whales in case I should need assistance, I am accepting the invitation of Captain Hill to accompany him to Melbourne where I can personally thank the authorities concerned for their friendly action. I will leave for New Zealand on March 4 to tender the same thanks to the authorities there. The Wyatt Earp will remain in the Bay of Whales until the Polar Star is brought aboard and will then proceed northward) to the edge of the ice, where her destination will be determined."