EXPEDITIONS TO THE SOUTH POLE. 50& 



for no trading vessel will ever plough those desert seas ; but it is 

 no small advantage to a nation to have to register such pages in 

 her annals, and to leave them as a legacy and an example to 

 future generations. 



The series of modern South Polar expeditions was opened in 

 1819 by Smith's casual discovery of New South Shetland. 

 Soon afterwards a Eussian expedition under Lazareff and Bel- 

 linghausen discovered (January, 1821), in 69° 3' south lat., the. 

 islands Paul the First and Alexander, the most southern lands 

 that had ever been visited by man. 



The year after, Captain Weddell, a sealer, penetrated into thb 

 , icy sea as far as 74° 15' south lat. three degrees nearer to the 

 pole than had been attained by the indomitable perseverance of 

 Cook. Swarms of petrels animated the sea, and no ice impeded 

 his progress, but as the season was far advanced, and Weddell 

 apprehended the dangers of the return voyage, he steered again 

 to the north. In 1831 Biscoe discovered Enderby Land, and 

 soon afterwards Graham's Land, to which the gratitude of geo- 

 graphers has since given the discoverer's name. 



Then follows Balleny who in 1839 revealed the existence of 

 the group of islands called after him, and of Sabrina Land (69° 

 south lat.). 



About the same time three considerable expeditions appear in 

 the southern seas, sent out by France, the United States, and 

 England. 



Dumont D'Urville discovered Terre Louis Philippe (63° 30' 

 south lat.) in February, 1838, and Terre Adelie (66° 67' south 

 lat.) on the 21st of January, 1840. 



Almost on the same day, Wilkes, the commander of the 

 United States exploring expedition reached a coast which he 

 followed for a length of 1500 miles, and which has been called 

 Wilkes' Land, to commemorate the discoverer's name. But of all 

 the explorers of the southern frozen ocean, the palm unquestion- 

 ably belongs to Sir James Eoss, who penetrated farther towards 

 the Pole than any other navigator before or after, and followed 

 up to 79° south lat. a steep coast, whose enormous glaciers 

 stretched far out into the sea. In 77° 5' south lat. he witnessed 

 a magnificent eruption of Mount Erebus, the Etna of the ex- 

 treme south. The enormous columns of flame and smoke rising 

 two thousand feet above the mouth of the crater, which is ele- 



