The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1909-12-23
COOK IS VICTIM
OF CRUEL FATE
Friend Says Original Records
Lost In Transit.
ENTRUSTED TO HIS WIFE

I ---------------
Woman sailed to Europe With pre-
cious Documents Penned by Ex-
plorer In Lonely Igloo at Jones
Sound and Failed to Meet secrc.
tary Lonsdale In London--Rumors
Of Plot to steal Papers Led to
Secrecy In Transmission.
New York, Dec. 23.--That DR.. Fred
erick A. Cook, the Bushwick explorer,
did not present his original" records
for examination by the committee of
scientists of the Copenhagen univer-
sity at the same time that he offered
through Secretary Lonsdale his 3d.
O0O-word analysis of the hypothetical
trip to the pole and back was due so
said particular friend of the physi-
clan. to terribly unfortunate con-
junction of circumstances in London
which prevented Cooks secretary
from connecting with the precious
originals, even though they had been
carried across the water by person
who was not shadowed by detectives.
This person was no less than Mrs.
Cook, said this authority, who insist
ed upon remaining In secure anonym-
ity, and she sailed from New York
on Dec. with the original diary and
original observations that her hus-
band had written by tbe aid of a
magnifying glass in the lonely igloo
at Jones sound, secure In her posses
sion.
From the time that Cook had fin
ished his exhaustive preparation of
the Copenhagen data In the Grama-
tan inn until he sailed from New
York on Dec. H. said this confldant
of the absent polar specialist, all of
his original documents and first-hand
records had remained securely i'm
INJURED behind the steel doors of a
safe in the office of his friend,
Charles Wake, on Broadway. But af-
ter Walter Lonsdale had sailed from
New York with only carbon copies of
the Cook data In his possession, DR..
Cook had arranged with his wife, go
this addendum to the most modern Of
the Arabian Nights read, that she
should slip out of New York, care
fully avoiding all detectives who
lurked along the waterfront, and with
the priced originals in her possession
she should hasten to London. There
Lonsdale was to get into communica.
tion with Mrs. Cook and ip that neu-
trail town, far away from the espion-
age of the gang of hired sleuths, Mrs.
Cook was to give the trusted secre.
tary all of the memorandums.
Mrs. Cook did sail and she did car
ry with her the all-important origin
ais, SO the tale is spun. She had In
tended sailing earlier than she did,
but all the stories of attempts which
were to be made to steal DR. Cooks
proofs en- route had made her delay
her departure until after some of the
smoke had blown away. She went to
London to await the arrival of Ions
dale. But somehow or other Lonsdale
never appeared In London to reliev,
her Of her burden. nor did DR.. Cook,
who by that time was somewhere be-
tween Naples and Chrlstiansand,
meet his wife and take from her the
original Jones sound data for trans
mission to Copenhagen.
Therefore, according to the nara
tor of this thousand-and-second tale,
Mrs. Cook must be somewhere In Eu-
rope with the facts which would have
meant vindication and glory for Dr..
Cook still In her reticule. Cook him
self Is somewhere in Europe. either
by accident or by design, bereft Of
his precious memorandums which,
during this time last year, he was
penciling by the aid of magnifying
glass in that stormbound igloo. Ions
dale is in Copenhagen, altogether dis
comfited. Just where the slip-up oc-
Cured the narrator himself does not