Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1897-07-28
AMID ARCTIC SHOWS.
How Explorer Pcary Subsinted While
on His Trip to the Frozen North,

How Explorer Pcary Subuinted While
on His Trip to the Frozen North.
Lieut.. Peary, whose brilliant exploits
in the far north have only been eclipsed
thus far by DR.. Gansen, has impaired
"a few of his ideas in housekeeping i'm
the arctic regions. OF course the main
stay OF the larder is a supply of canned
articles, such as preserves, Jams, bis
cults, vegetables, butter, tea, coffee,
chocolate, cocoa and, in short, every
variety of food that is capable of being
preserved in a canister. Such supplies
nre' OF course, most useful On board the
ship; during sledge journeys it is, how
ever, different. "On these" said Peary,
there must be the steruest simplicity
i'll the matter of food. The changes
which l should make in another ex-
petitions sledge equipment would be
nil In the direction ot cutting down
the variety of food supplies. There
are just four things in the way of pro-
visions that I should take, and those
are Pemmican, ship's biscuit, tea and
condensed milk. A fifth article woulI
he furnished in the shape of fresh meat
Of any kind that we might kill on the
woy. On my previous journey took
"a great many things that were not only
useless, but worse, bersuse they mere
ly added weight to the sledges and thus
wasted our strength unnecessarily. II
n man cannot get along with pemmican
and biscuit, with tea to drink, the arctic
regions are no place for him. He
mustn't expect the luXuries of q hotel
dinner.
"Pemmican is beef mixed with a COLI
siderable quantity of suet. It is the
staple arctic food, and is not at all dis
agreeable to the taste. 1t is much COM
pressed. One pound of it is equal to
four pounds Of ordinary meat, so that
the carrying of it reduces the sledgt
weight very much. One pound of it is
the daily ration for a man. OF the
hard ship biscuit one pound is also q
days allowance, and of tea about n
quart. These rations are consumed al
most always in two meals, which are
all we have time to stop for on sledge
journeys.
"The tea is in compressed, quarter
pound cakes, which are further marked
off, somewhat like a cake of chocolate,
into little divisions of n qunrter-ounce
each. One of these makes a pint OF
tea, and it is stronger than one general
ly drinks at home. The condensed milk
is the ordinary article which you see
everywhere. 1t freezes, of course, often
perfectly solid, but that docs not impair
it. Tea is the only drink for sledge
journeys. Coffee is not satisfactory,
nor is chocolate or cocoa, which pro-
duces thirst. Lime juice | have no faith
IN at oil, and shall never try ii again.
It has always been thonght necessary
to. counteract n tendency to scurvy
from the consumption of SO much salt
and fatty food. But l never had any
indications of scurvy in any Of my
party.
"Dried vegetables have been carried
by some explorers, and while they arc
well enough to have at the headquar-
t1rs, where, as / said, there may be
any variety one chooses, they are en-
tIrely superfuous while s!edgiug. n
man can get along perfectly well with
out vegetables; in fact, / never eat
them, even at home, and there isn't
much nourishment in them for arctic
work. There is only one thing besides
those l have mentioned which l consid-
er good, and that IS compressed pea
soup. 1t has great deal Of nutriment
in it and is especially palatable. But il
can be dispensed with II reduction O.
weight becomes a highly important
point, for the pemmican and biscui
are Trustworthy stand-bys."-N. Y. Tel
egram. ..