THE FUNCTION AND FIELD OF GEOGRAPHY. 395 



stages for the work of a well-equipped expeditiou. It may be that tliey 

 do not go mucli farther than we find them on our maps. Whatever be 

 the case it is important, in the interests of science, that this section of 

 the Polar area be examined; that as high a latitude as possible be 

 attained; that soundings be made to discover whether the deep ocean 

 extends all round the Pole. It is stated that the gallant Lieutenant 

 Peary has organized a scheme of exploring this area which would take 

 several years to accomplish. Let us hope that he will be able to carry 

 out his scheme. Meantime, should Canada look on with indifference"? 

 She has attained tlie standing of a great and prosperous nation. She 

 has shown the most commendable zeal in the exploration of her own 

 immense territory. She has her educational, scientific, and literary 

 institutions which will compare favorably with those of other countries; 

 her i^ress is of a high order, and she has made the beginnings of a litera- 

 ture and an art of her own. In these respects she is walking in the steps 

 of the mother country. But has Canada not reached a stage when she 

 is in a position to follow the maternal example still further"? What has 

 more contributed to render the name of Great Britain illustrious than 

 those great enterprises which for centuries sire has sent out from her 

 own shores, not a few of them solely in the interests of science? Such 

 enterprises elevate a nation and form its glory and its pride. Surely 

 Canada has ambitions beyond mere material prosperity, and what bet- 

 ter beginning could be made than the equipment of an expedition for 

 the exploration of the seas that lie between her and the Pole? I ven- 

 ture to throw out these suggestions for the consideration of those who 

 have at heart the honor and glory of the great Canadian Dominion. 



IsTot only has an interest in Arctic exploration been revived, but in 

 Europe at least an even greater interest has grown up in the explora- 

 tion of the region around the opposite pole of the earth, of which our 

 knowledge is so scanty. Since Sir James C. Boss's expedition, which 

 was sent out in the year 1839, almost nothing has been done for Ant- 

 arctic research. We have here to deal with conditions different from 

 those which surround the North Pole. Instead of an almost landless 

 ocean, it is believed by those who have given special attention to the 

 subject that a continent about the size of Australia covers the South 

 Polar region. But we don't know for certain, and surely, in the inter- 

 ests of our science, it is time we had a fairly adequate idea of what 

 are the real conditions. We want to know what is the extent of that 

 land, what are its glacial conditions, what is the character of its geol- 

 ogy, what evidence exists as to its physical and biological conditions in 

 past ages. We know there is one lofty, active volcano; are there any 

 others? Moreover, the science of terrestrial magnetism is seriously 

 impeded in its progress because the data in this dei)artment from the 

 Antarctic are so scanty. The seas around this continent require to 

 be investigated both as to their depth, their temperature, and their life. 

 We have here, in short, the most extensive unexplored area on the 



