Whilst the greatest effort has been made to ensure the quality of this text, due to the historical nature of this content, in some rare cases there may be minor issues with legibility. The proper function of a modern preface, it has been said, is to save reviewers trouble. In the case of a volume containing some history of a country which never had any inhabitants, constructed out of scattered references in state papers and the miscellaneous records of industrial voyages, a preface of that kind may also be helpful to a reader, who either lacks the time or the inclination to make close acquaintance with the whole book.<br><br>Let me then first appeal to reviewers and all readers alike henceforward to spell the name of the country correctly. Spitsbergen is the only correct spelling; Spitzbergen is a relatively modern blunder. The name is Dutch, not German. The second 's' asserts and commemorates the nationality of the discoverer.<br><br>In publishing this volume I am at length fulfilling a pledge given nine years ago in the book describing my first Spitsbergen journey of 1896. The preliminary studies made for that and for my second journey in the far North provided me with a considerable amount of unpublished materials for Arctic History which it seemed proper to bring together in a form convenient for reference.
