CLAIMS TO ANTARCTICA

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 72, Issue 287, 3 December 1929, Page 7

CLAIMS TO ANTARCTICA

UNITED STATES EXPLORATION BYRD S FLIGHT FANS HEATED AMERICAN PRESS As is to be expected, Commander Byrd’s flight over the South Pole has again raised American claims to territory in the Antarctic, although the tracts found by Byrd arc that eastward of meridian 150 and called Marie Byrd Land and the Rockefeller Range lying to the south of this land. American comment, however, has suggested the pressure of rights to Wilkes Land, a region on the other side of the Antarctic continent, and over which British sovereignty has been declared, and even raising the larger issue of British rights in general in the Antarctic.

CIAIMS STRENGTHENED? AMERICAN PRESS COMMENT “IMPUDENCE AND EFFRONTERY” Received Dec. 2, 11 p.m. LONDON, Dec. 2. The Washington Post editorially declares that Byrd’s Polar flight has strengthened the United States’ claim to the Antarctic. It says that British claims have thereto been based on nothing but impudence and effrontery and it is pointed out that Lieutenant Wilkes, U.S.A., discovered the Antarctic on December, 1832, whereas the Britisher, Captain Ross, did not see land prior to 1840. The newspaper contends that Byrd’s expedition was more practical. “He has discovered new lands and claimed them and occupied them for the United States.’’ DRAMATIC INCIDENTS HEMMED IN BY GORGE [By Russell Owen-Special to New York Times] BAY r OF WHALES, Nov. 30. The South Pole flight was one of the most dramatic as well as most efficient flights ever made. As incidents were recalled by the four men concerned it seems miraculous that everything went so well. The weather which favoured them turned into a storm a few hours after their return. The way in which the ’plane with its heavy load was swished over the hump at the top of the plateau by the smooth-running motors, under the most severe conditions, and all the signs make it seem more remarkable as the story is told. There never was a busier ’plane crew. One gets an impression of continuous and strained activity from their stories—Byrd moving about taking sights and observations from all parts of the ’plane, conferring with the others on the gas consumption and routes through the mountains, and making notes; June and McKinley juggling with gas cans and cameras over a mass of supplies in the middle of the fuselage. Balchen sat for long hours in the cockpit at the controls, and was relieved occasionally so that he could stretch and handle the gas cans and tanks as a break in the monotony. Both Mac and June were still stiff and sore to-day after a good night’s sleep. “I feel as though I had been run over by a steam roller,” laughed June, as he got up.

Decision as to Route. The flight out to the mountains was without incident, and after passing the geological party, where mail and food for them were dropped, the ’plane started climbing. As the mountains were reached there came the first de-

cision of what route to take. The Axel Heiberg was Amundsen’s route, but Byrd thought that the Livs Glacier, named after Nansen’s daughter, seemed a better path. Even that was a gamble, for although it could be seen that there was some sort of opening at the top it was impossible to tell at just what height it touched the plateau. To get into a narrow gorge where the mountains would close in, and the ’plane could not turn, with a glacier in front too high for a heavy ’plane to climb over would have been disastrous.

At an elevation of 10.000 ft. it was seen that the ’plane could not get over the mountain with its load. “Balchen told me he had to get rid of something,” said the commander, “so I decided to dump food. Gas was too precious. Two hundred and eighty pounds of grub was thrown through the hatch in the bottom of the fuselage—the brown bags whirling over and over until they struck the glacier 500 ft. below.” The ’plane had just passed over a steep precipice in the glacier, and ahead loomed another steep rampart of ice. Balehen had been dodging from one side to the other to get favourable upward currents, and when the food was dumped June began to empty gasoline from the tins into the fuselage tank and throw the tins overboard, to get ride of their weight. The ’plane was winding from one side of the gorge to the other, stretching the tcn-mile approach ahead as much as possible to help in the stiff climb upward. When he was not handling cans June was making moving pictures, the ’plane tossing in violent gusts and up-and-down currents, the walls of the canyon spinning past and occasional views of mighty peaks on cither side being seen through breaks in the rampart around them. Walls Closing Around. The walls of stone were closing in around them and the ’plane laboured upward. Ahead, a fringe of clouds lay over the eoge of the plateau, where the glacier ended on one side. A little knoll stood above them. On the east was a higher slope of mountain, ending in cloud below, but far above the ’plane. Everything hinged upon those next few minutes. There was no room

to turn, and no assurance that there was a gap where that fringe of cloud lay, and the ’plane, staggering at its maximum with the load it then carried, squashed along sluggishly. Perhaps it would make the grade with 200 or 360 feet to spare. Bernt headed for the knoll to the west in the hope that •the up current there would help them over, while Byrd, beside him, stared ahead at at the sides and listened to the smoothly-running motors. If one of them had stopped then! Even as they watched a tiny hole over the cloud and the surface of the glacier could be seen. The ’plane could just make it; with its final effort it just ballooned over, as Balchen put it. He shook his head and smiled at the recollection of that moment. But the end of that long effort was not yet over, for flying at 11,500 ft. or 12,000 ft. the plateau was stretching flat under them, and only a short distance below, and they still had to flop along. Effects on Crew. June was still emptying gasoline and taking movies, and Mac was lugging his big camera, weighing 501bs, back and forth. Their movement made flying more difficult, for with every change in the distribution of. the weight the height-stabiliser had to be adjusted, and it was stiff from the cold. Balchen w&s driving with one hand and pumping with the other alternately. The others began to feel the effect of their rapid movements at such an altitude, and the emptying of gas tanks made fumes in the cabin which were almost overpowering. Sweat streamed off them. “I could feel my heart pumping away and I was gasping for breath,” Byrd said, “and wondered what was the matter with me, till I looked at Harold, and saw him with his mouth open like a catfish gulping.” The air was warm in the ’plane all the time—so warm that Balchen flew with bare hands the entire trip, and the others only put on gloves when they worked near an open window. The plateau stretching ahead was covered in spots by drift snow, and in the south-east and for a time in the south clouds hung on the horizon. Again things did not look so good. If the weather changed soon, and it undoubtedly was changing, they would again be out of luck. June relieved Balchen at the controls, and Bernt dumped seven more cans of gasoline into the fuselage tank, so that it could be pumped to the wings or dumped if necessary. Ahead was still another hump, which was to be crossed, although the ’plane was holding its altitude and climbing a little. Back Over the Barrier. The.’plane slid on fast with the motors throttled down, and presently came over the barrier to the east of the depot placed on the former flight. Byrd turned east for a time to see something of the country over that way, but the vanishing gas caused him to turn back after a short time and he headed for the depot. It was hard to find at first. June climbed into the cockpit and took command, as he had been there on the former flight, and after smeke bombs had been dropped by the commander to get the wind direction June picked a fairly smooth landing place. Fortunately the wind was such that he could land parallel to the snow ridges, and by the time the ’plane hit the bumps the speed had decreased by half. We taxied around to get the ’plane in position so that good pictures could be taken of it there on the snow with the base and the mountains in the background. We noticed that since the formej landing much more ice had formed by the melting foot of the Livs Glacier. It was like looking at a big pool of water shining in? the sun. More Food Cached. At the base the commander took more sights and then buried more food for the geological party. Whilst he was doing this Balchen and Mac were opening the gasoline tins left there and passing them up to June on top of the wing, where he stood in the cold wind. After Refuelling. When they had refuelled, which took about an hour 4 , they took off again and made it easily with the light load and wind to help them. The load was on the wings before they hit the bumps, which eased the shock on the landing gear and skis. From there on the flight was comparatively easy, although Commander Byrd iiad to navigate all the way. They went somewhat to ’ east and when they came back did not see the dog trail at all. • They first hit it at the crevasses about 160 miles out, making a pe feet landfall there and then following the compass course, for the trail was completely invisible at this time. They came straight on to camp. The commander flew part of the way, and Mac also took the controls on the latter part of the flight. They did not see a landmark until a few miles from the camp. They then sighted the radio towers ahead. In a few hours there was a high wind blowing, and there was so much drift that the house windows were buried this morning.