142 ANNUAL RECORD OF SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY. 



a vessel, properly fitted for the purpose, could make the pas- 

 sage from Behring's Strait to the Atlantic in one year from 

 the time of passing Behring's Strait. San Francisco Bulle- 

 tin, April 5,1872. 



DE. KAY ON ARCTIC EXPLORATIONS. 



Dr. John Ray, formerly well known for his labors in the 

 way of arctic exploration, replies to the proposition of Mr. 

 Markham to prosecute polar exploration by way of Smith 

 Sound by taking the ground that a course along the west 

 shore to the north of Spitzbergen is by far the best. He 

 states that at Spitzbergen a vessel can always get as far as 

 80 north, and perhaps farther, while the farthest latitude at- 

 tained by ships through Smith Sound is only 78 40'. He 

 thinks that by following the Spitzbergen route, and then tak- 

 ing sledges, the object aimed at can be reached with greater 

 certainty than from any other direction. The amount of 

 travel by sledges will not be over 1400 geographical miles, 

 and this is not beyond the power of sledges to accomplish. 

 20 A, December 9, 1871, 727. 



ALLEGED NEWS FROM THE POLARIS. 



A remarkable story from Newfoundland is detailed in a 

 letter to the New York Times of April 15, to the effect that 

 a Danish brig just arrived, which had left Disco on the 1st of 

 March, brought information that the Polaris, under Captain 

 Hall, had been there for two days undergoing repairs and 

 procuring afresh supply of provisions. The account goes on 

 to say that on the evening of February 8 the Polaris encoun- 

 tered extremely heavy weather, and while lying to, owing 

 to the shallowness of the water, ran among ice snags, which 

 caused a leak in the vessel, and made it necessary to proceed 

 to Disco for repairs. Mysterious intimations were given of 

 wonderful discoveries which had already been made by the 

 Polaris, indicating the existence of a genial atmosphere and 

 open seas in the extreme north. Plants indigenous to south- 

 ern climes were detected in the ice, while a floating stick of 

 wood proved to be northern birch. Throughout the whole 

 of the month of February very little ice was seen, and the 

 skies were literally alive with meteors of the most gorgeous 

 description. 



