Of itself, that mathematical point which marks the northern termination of the axis of our earth, is of no more importance than any other point within the unknown polar area; but it is of much more importance that this particular point be reached, because there clings about it in the imagination of all mankind, such fascination that, till the Pole is discovered, all Arctic research must be affected, if not overshadowed, by the yearning to attain it." George W.Melville, chief engineer of the United States Navy, who did such notable service in the Jeanette expedition of 1879, writes in words that stir the pulse: "Is there a better school of heroic endeavor than the Arctic zone?
It is something to stand where the foot of man has never trod.

It is something to do that which has defied the energy of the race for the last twenty years.

It is something to have the consciousness that you are adding your modicum of knowledge to the world's store.

It is worth a year of the life of a man with a soul larger than a turnip, to see a real iceberg in all its majesty and grandeur.

It is worth some sacrifice to be alone, just once, amid the awful silence of the Arctic snows, there to communicate with the God of nature, whom the thoughtful man finds best in solitude and silence, far from the haunts of men--alone with the Creator." Thus the explorers.