The Portland daily press., 1895-10-02
WILL LET THE POLE GO.
Lieutenant Peary Says He Shall Not
Return North.
WORK MUST BE DONE BY YOUNGER
AND TOUGHER MEN.
A Chat With the Explorer at His Home
in PleasantdaIe-A Stream of Callers.

A Chat With the Explorer at His Home
in PleasantdaIe-AS Stream of Callers.
"No," said Lieut.. Peary Tuesday
morning 81 shall never see the North
Pole unless someone brings it here, " and
then looking out of the window he said
" 1t seems good to be back here where
can see such strange things as houses,
trees and people,
Lieut.. and Mrs. Peary reached here
Tuesday morning at o'clock arriving
over the Canadian Pacific. They went
to their home near Cape Elizabeth cross
ing Tuesday morning, and when they
reached there the explorer found that his
aged mother had gone over to Portland to
meet BIN. Impatient to meet her son
she could not wait for his coming, and SC
left for the city. The lieutenant started
after her and met her on her way back
sorrowful at the thought that something
had delayed him. The meeting between
the mother and son was affecting. For
months she had looked forward to his re-
turn, and when she failed to meet him on
the coming in of the morning train the
disappointment was great.
When the mother and son walked from
the station to the house the aged woman
leaning on his strong arm they made a
picture to be remembered. She was
hardly willing to allow her boy to leave
her even long enough to talk with the
correspondent of the PRESS.
Before Lieut.. Peary reached the house
Mrs. Peary spoke of the return of her
husband, and said that while he was look
ing we'll she hoped and believed he had
got enough of the arctic region" She
spoke brightly and braveiy of her own ex-
perience while in tho land of ice, but said
that she thought that her husband had
one quite enough in that line.
Lieut.. Peary said that it was too early
for him to attempt to review his expert
ence during the long months he spent
searching for the north pole.
II am done with it" he said. Sin my
Judgement such work requires far
younger man than I. The leader of such
a party should be- able not only to do as
much as any one else, but more than any
other man. He should be under 80,
rather than over 40. I am too old to
snowshoe 25 to 80 miles day, for weeks
and to carry heavy load during most of
the time. For that work one should be a
trained man, a thorough athlete, and that
I am not
He said he is rapidly recovering his
health but is not yet in condition Pass
ing to the question "Will the pole ever be
reached9'' Lieut. Peary said II believe
that it will, and I think that the work
will be accomplished in a comparatively
short time I am however no believer in
the existence of the open polar sea-"
He said that while he is convinced that
the way to reach the pole will be found,
he is not ready to express an opinion as
to methods He was asked if he believed
in the possibility of reaching the pole by
aid of balloon, and while he said that he
had not given the balloon theory any
special thought, he half laughed.
as if recalling in connection with that
theory some of his own experience while
searching for the elusive pole.
He spoke modestly of his work during
his last trip. He said his party suffered
much. but it was because "We were un-
able TO keep sufficient steam in the human
boilers, in other words, we could not
carry with US food enough to enable US to
fully sustain our strength.
"There are three things" he said "that
operate against those who try to reach the
pole The ice, that is in the way of the
vessels, the darkness during SO many
and the extreme difficulty in
carrying about enough provision in con-
densed FORM These are the difficulties
that some one must largely overcome if
the work is to be accomplished.
He said that it will be mistake If an
other large party is sent on the work of
discovery. 'sThe larger the party, he
said the "greater the difficulty. 1t may be
possible to find four men able to with
stand the cold and the exposure, but in a
large party one would be sure to give
out, and the strength OF a chain is to be
Judged by its weakest, and not its strong
est link A party of explorers might fail
the weakness of single man. ="
You see, he added that this is SO much
a matter of detail, and every little detail
must be looked after. So far removed
from base of supplies the least change
affects everything. and may involve great
Lieut. Peary said that his time for the
next few days will be very fully occupied.
All his specimens and the like, as we'll as
all his papers have been forwarded to
New York He has many friends to see
here before he will be able to settle down
to work again
viii you write book? was asked, and
he smiled and said II don't know about
that. I may not write book, but I