INTRODUCTION 53 



year divides the unknown polar basin into two parts. 

 In the eastern part the prevailing winds blow towards 

 the Bering Sea, while those of the western part blow 

 towards the Atlantic. He thought that, as a rule, this 

 "wind-shed" must lie near the Bering Sea, and that the 

 prevailing winds in the tracts we purposed traversing 

 w^ould thus favor our drift. Our experience bore out 

 Professor Supan's theory in a remarkable degree. 



