412 LETTERS FROM THE ANDREE PARTY. 



when the pigeon was released. Anclree started on a wind which car- 

 ried his balloon along at the rate of 25 or 30 miles an hour. Had he 

 continued northward at this rate he would have reached the Pole in 

 less than two days. But I believe when these southern winds strike 

 the northern ice, and become colder, they also become slower. There- 

 fore, the rate of progress of his balloon would be greatly lessened 

 as he x)roceeded northward. However, we know that he was going 

 toward the east when last heard from. 



If the balloonists managed to land safely on Franz Josef land, they 

 may have been able to pull through the winter by erecting a hut and 

 by hunting for food, as has been pointed out. It may be that they 

 have gone too far north to sustain themselves in this manner. On the 

 other hand, they may have descended into the ocean, although in the 

 latter event they had one meager chance left open to them. It has 

 been said that Andree acted in an ill-advised manner when he placed 

 his provisions in packages uj) in the ropes of his balloon rather than 

 in the basket in which he and his companions were to live. It has 

 been said that if the basket had been overturned the balloonists would 

 have been spilled out, and the balloon, relieved of their weight, would 

 immediately bound in the air and carry away with it their precious 

 food. But Andree's conclusions in this matter showed him to have 

 been more far-sighted than his critics. His idea was that the balloon 

 might descend into the sea, in which case he and his companions would 

 be compelled to take to those very ropes themselves. Then, by cutting 

 loose the basket beneath them, the balloon would rebound into the air 

 and carry upward not only the aeronauts, but their precious food as 

 well. 



So it is all highly problematical. Under fortunate circumstances the 

 explorers might exist several years in the Arctic regions. Everything 

 that could be done to insure the success of the trip was done before 

 they started. They were provided with every necessary of life; they 

 had provisions, arms, ammunition, sledges, and a boat. They might, 

 if they are on the mainland, gradually journey southward, in which 

 case we shall hear of them before long. If they dropped into the 

 ocean, they are lost. If they have reached the Polar cap and wrecked 

 their balloon, they undoubtedly have found the great spot which so 

 many have striven to find ; but whether they will ever be able to tell 

 its mysteries to the world is another question which I would rather not 

 be asked to answer. 



