He acquired, for £14,000 (current value £1,320,000), a 300-ton barquentine called Polaris, which had been built for the Belgian explorer Adrien de Gerlache for an expedition to Spitsbergen.
Han købte for £14.000 en 300-ton barkentine kaldet Polaris, der var blevet bygget for den belgiske eventyrer Adrien de Gerlache til en ekspedition til Spitsbergen.