PREFACE 



AtfONG the many books about the Polar regions 

 there is none quite like this, dealing with the 

 gradual progress of exploration towards the north 

 along the different areas of advance within the Arctic 

 Circle. 



The subject is always interesting, for few regions 

 have been the scene of more persistent effort and 

 exciting adventure and unexpected gains from the 

 unknown, particularly in the earlier days when the 

 endeavour to find the northern passages to the east and 

 west led to the beginning of our foreign trade. 



It is often asked, " What is the use of further Arctic 

 discovery ? ' No one knows. Nor did any one know 

 the use of most discoveries before they were made. 



When Eric landed in Greenland he was not in 

 search of cryolite for aluminium. When Cabral sailed 

 to Porto Seguro he knew nothing of the incandescent 

 gas-mantle. When Oersted looped the live wire round 

 the magnetic needle he was not bent on founding 

 electrical engineering. And when Linnasus noticed 

 the sleep of plants he had no intention of providing 

 a substitute for a clock in high latitudes where, though 



