Reading the explorers
Open water among ice floes, unexpected warmth and debris carried by icebergs all interested Reed. He quoted travellers including Fridtjof Nansen, then gave their observations a new explanation. In his reading, warmer water and air could emerge from inside the planet. A drawing of the Earth in section made the proposed route visible in a way that a view from a ship’s deck never could. Polar exploration and geophysics have since established the geography that Reed could only speculate about.
A book with a clearer history than its author
The Walter S. Rockey Company issued the volume in 1906. The surviving edition and library catalogues agree on Reed’s byline. Accounts of his life sometimes give dates, but the records identified for this author do not establish them independently. His connection to other works signed William Reed is likewise uncertain.
