Los Angeles herald., 1909-10-13

which he could possibly have made any
attempts to go to it,
The answers of the Eskimo boys to
Commander Peary's series of inde-
pendent questions, showing that they
killed no game, made no caches, lost
no dogs, and returned to the land
with loaded sledges makes the attain
ment of the pole on the trip north of
Cape Thomas Hubbard a physical and
mathematical impossibility, as it
would demand the subsistence of three
men and dogs during a journey of
1040 geographical miles on less than
two sledge loads of supplies.
Dates Must Be Mixed
If it is suggested that perhaps Mr..
Cook got mixed and that he reached the
pole or thought he did between the
time OF leaving the northwest coast of
Heibergland at Cape Northwest, and
his arrival at Ringnes land, where they
killed the deer, we must then add to
the date of DIR. Cooks letter of March
II, at or near Cape Thomas Hubbard,
the subsequent four or five sleeps
at that point and the number of
days required to march from Cape
Thomas Hubbard to Cape Northwest
Ga distance of some sixty nautical
miles,, which would advance his date
of departure from the land to at least
the 25th of March and be prepared to
accept the claim that DR.. Cook went
from Cape Northwest about latitude
so 1-2 degrees north to the pole, a dis
tance of $40 geographical miles, in
twenty-seven days.
After killing the deer they then trav-
eled south along the east side of Ring
mes land to the point indicated on the
chare where they killed another deer.
They then went east across the south
part of Grown Prince Gustav sea to
the south end of Heibergland, then
down through Norwegian bay, where
they secured some bear, but not until
after they had killed some of their
dogs; to the east side of Graham is
land; then eastward to the little bay
marked "Eids Fiord'' on Sverdup's s
chart; then southwest to Hells Gate
and Simmons peninsula.
Encounter Open Water
Here. for the first time during the
entire journey, except as already noted
off Cape Thomas Hubbard, they en-
countered open water. On this point
the boys were clear emphatic and un-
shakable.
They spent a good deal of time in
this region, and finally abandoned their
boat. crossed HelFs Gate to North Kent,
up into Norfolk inlet, then back along
the north coast of Colin Archer penin-
sula to Cape Vera, where they obtained
fresh eiderduck eggs. Here they cut
the remaining sledge off, that is, short
ened it, as it was awkward to trans
port with the boat, and near here they
killed a walrus.
The statement in regard to the fresh
eggs permits the approximate
determination of the date at this time
as about the first of July.
This statement also serves, If indeed
anything more than the inherent
Neutrality-suspicious. and detail of their
narrative were needed to substantiate
the accuracy and truthfulness of the
boys statement
This locality of Cape Vera is mem
toned in Sverdrup's narrative as the
place where, during his stay in that
region, he obtained eiderduck eggs.
Killed Wild Animals
From Cape Vera they went on down
into the southwest angle of Jones'
sound, where they killed a seal, thence
along the south coast of the sound, kill
ing three bears at the point noted on
the map, to the peninsula known as
Cape Sparbo, about midway on the
south side of Jones' sound. Here they
killed some musk oxen, and, continuing
east, killed four more at the place in
dicated on the chart and were finally
stopped by the pack ice at the mouth
of Jones' sound. From this place they
turned back to Cape Sparbo, where they
wintered and killed many musk oxen.
After the sun returned in 1909 they
started pushing their sledge across
Jones' sound to Cape Tennyson, then
along the coast to Clarence Head
(passing inside of two small islands,
not shown on the chart, but drawn on
it by the boys, where they killed a
bear; thence across the broad. Blight
in the coast of Cadogan Fiord; thence
around Cape Isabella and up to Com
mander Peary's old house in Payer
harbor near Cape Sabine, where they
found a seal cached for them by Pani-
kpah, I-Took-A-Shoo's father From
here, they crossed Smith sound on the
ice, arriving at Anoratok.
ROBERT E. PEARY, Z. S. N.
ROBERT A. BARTLETT,
Master s. S. Roosevelt.
D. B. MCMILLAN.
GEORGE BORUP.