CHAPTER VIII 



THE VOYAGE OF THE JEANNETTE (1879-81) 



The Jeannette was the new name given to Sir Allen 

 Young's Pandora after it was purchased by James 

 Gordon Bennett, who had decided to equip a North Polar 

 expedition. 



The commander of the expedition, Lieutenant George 

 W. De Long, had taken an active and distinguished part 

 in the search for the Polaris. In making an attempt to 

 reach the Pole, he favoured the route by Behring Strait, 

 and he was supported by Bennett himself, who had been 

 influenced by the views of Dr. Petermann, the German 

 geographer. One of the chief reasons for choosing the 

 Behring Strait route was the supposed existence of a 

 Japan current, which, it was hoped, would open a way 

 towards the Pole. Another reason was the view held 

 as to the extent of Wrangel Land. Petermann actually 

 believed that it extended right across the Pole and was 

 the continuation of Greenland. It was afterwards proved 

 to be only a small island. 



Lieutenant Chipp, the second in command, acted with 

 De Lono- in the search for the Polaris. George W. 

 Melville, chief engineer, had been a comrade of De Long's 

 in the navy. The ice-pilot was William Dunbar, who 

 had been master of whale-ships in and north of Behring 

 Strait. Nindemann, the ice-quartermaster, was one of 

 the crew of the Polaris who underwent the terrible 

 winter-drift on the ice-floe. 

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