March 9, 1899] 



NA TURE 



443 



mathematician Gauss, who by his work on terrestrial 

 magnetism gave the impulse to the three expeditions of 

 D'Urville, Wilkes and Ross, to the last of which we owe 

 the whole groundwork of our scientific knowledge of the 

 South Polar region. Although the work of Cook and his 

 successors proved the non-existence of an Antarctic con- 

 tinent valuable from a commercial point of view, it is 

 still the fact that their voyages have — unlike those to the 

 North — brought to light more and more fragments of 

 land, and led to the involuntary conclusion that a con- 

 tinent does lie in those regions. 



From a geographical point of view, the fundamental 

 problem attached to the South Polar region — the verifica- 

 tion or disproof of the existence of such a continent — is 

 still unsolved. No less important questions likewise 

 await solution with respect to the geological structure and 

 character of the southern lands— so important in con- 

 nection with a knowledge of volcanic action and the 

 supposed former connection of .South .\merica with 

 Australia — and with respect to the conditions of inland 

 ice. It was pointed out by the speaker that even the 

 study of the floating ice broken away from the main mass 

 may lead to important conclusions as to its mode of 

 origin, and the nature of the land from which it comes. 

 Other problems to be investigated are : the origin of the 

 cold ocean currents which take their rise in the south ; 

 the conditions of atmospheric pressure and temperature 

 in that region ; and the questions relating to terrestrial 

 magnetism, which have so important a bearing on the 

 practice of navigation. Lastly, Dr. von Drygalski alluded, 

 like .Sir Clements Markham in this country, to the im- 

 portance of such an expedition from the point of view of 

 practical training to navigators, and the upholding of 

 national prestige ; while he also pointed out the ad- 

 vantages of international co-operation by the sending out 

 of simultaneous expeditions. 



The section of Dr. von Drygalski's address w-hich will 

 be read with most interest is, perhaps, that relating to 

 the plans which have already been formed for the carrv- 

 ing out of the enterprise. He began by pointing out that 

 the present seems a particularly favourable period for the 

 resumption of South Polar research, by reason of the un- 

 usual amount of drift-ice which has within the last i^w 

 years broken away from the main mass. This, together 

 with the fact that we are now, according to Supan, pass- 

 ing through a warmer temperature-period, should make 

 the next few years unusually favourable to navigation, 

 and suggests as the most suitable starting-point for an 

 expedition the Southein Indian Ocean, where drift ice 

 has been particularly abundant since 1894. Such a choice 

 also fits in well with the suggestions which have been 

 made with regard to an English expedition, the Southern 

 Pacific and \'ictoria Land having been mentioned as the 

 probable sphere of the latter. Proceeding southwards on 

 about the meridian of Kerguelen Land, and making en 

 roKlc the necessary scientific observations of all kinds, 

 the expedition would attempt to reach some land where a 

 winter station could be formed, and where systematic 

 observations would be continued at the edge of the ice- 

 sheet. In the spring an advance would be attempted 

 southwards over the ice and towards the Magnetic Pole. 

 In the autumn a return would be made as far as possible 

 in a westerly direction along the coast-line supposed to 

 be discovered, the programme being completed within 

 about two years from the date of saihng. The accom- 

 panying sketch-map, based on one which accompanies 

 the report of the meeting in the Verhaiuilungcii of the 

 Berlin Geographical Society, shows the proposed route 

 in accordance with the above programme. On account of 

 the stormy nature of the southern seas, the lines adopted 

 for the construction of the train w ill not be suitable, sea- 

 worthiness being the first requisite. Ice-pressure is less 

 to be feared in the south than in the north, since the cur- 

 rents radiate outwards instead of inwards ; and the 



NO. 1532, VOL. 59] 



necessary strength can be supplied by internal supports. 

 For many reasons it is thought unnecessary to despatch 

 more than one ship, one having proved sufficient for 

 recent North Polar voyages, while the movements of one 

 ship are often hampered by the endeavour to keep in 

 company with a consort. Should the vessels separate for 

 the better prosecution of scientific work, there would be 

 two expeditions, not one, and no additional security 

 would be gained. The vessel should be built of wood, 

 both for its advantages in ice-navigation and to allow of 

 undisturbed magnetic observations. These, with those 

 concerned with meteorology, formed the subject of 

 special remarks by Dr. von Bezold, who pointed out the 



Suggested 

 3 :-,ih Route-— 

 ditto -*->- 



particular value attaching to such obserxations in the 

 region in question. 



The whole plan of the expedition seems to have been 

 well thought out. and, judging from his previous services 

 to polar research, the scientific work could not be in 

 better hands than those of Dr. von Drygalski. It is to 

 be hoped that the remaining difficulties may speedily be 

 overcome, and that the result may be an important ad- 

 dition, within the next few years, to our scanty knowledge 

 of the southern regions. 



o 



THE SIKHIM HIMALAYAS^ 

 UR ignorance of the Eastern Himalayas is simply 

 astonishing. It is hardly credible that for nearly 

 1000 miles, from the western extremity of Nepal (long. 

 about 81° E.) to the eastern end of .-\ssam (long. 96' E.) 

 there is only the one small tract of Sikhini, barely fifty 

 miles broad, in which the higher mountains are accessible 

 to Europeans. Throughout Nepal and Bhutan and in 

 the wild forest tracts, inhabited by barbarous Indo- 

 Chinese tribes, east of the latter, none of the rulers of 

 British India can show their faces. 



But even in the small mountain region that is open to 

 exploration very few travellers take advantage of the 

 opportunities afforded to them. In the book before us, 

 the author justly insists on the great superiority of the 

 Eastern over the Western Himalayas in scenery. 

 Whether he is right or not in calling the magnificent 

 panorama seen from Senchal, close to Darjeeling, " the 



1 ".-Vmong the Himalayas." By Major L. A. Waddell, LL.D., F.L.S., 

 &c., Indian Army Medical Corps. Pp. xvi -(- 452. (We 

 Constable, 1S99.) 



