The feat of Captain Wilkins and Mr. Eielson, who flew
more than 2,000 miles across the ice from Alaska to Spitzbergen, was amazing. They were not much more than twenty hours in the air, but they were storm-bound on an island for five days. When the aeroplane was starting again from the island Captain Wilkins had to push the machine and jump in while it was moving. Twice he was thrown off, and he must very nearly have been killed. Indeed, the margin between triumph and disaster was always very fine. The flight, however, was much better worth doing than some others which we call to mind.. Captain Wilkins is a scientific explorer of the best sort ; he takes profitable risks but avoids useless risks. He and his pilot in courage and self-possession were evidently a perfect combination. He reports that though they flew over a hitherto unexplored area they saw no new land.
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