The Ogden standard. [volume] (Ogden City, Utah) 1902-1910, 1909-09-28
VHITNEY'S
MESSAGE
Corroborates All That
DIR. Cook Has Said
as to Trip

ST Johns, y F., Sept 2S-The
Arctic vessel Jeanio, with Harry
Whitney. the New Haven big game
hunter on board, has arrived here
from the Greenland coast by way Of
Indian Harbor. Labrador.
Mr.. Whitney was questioned regard
ing the statements made to him by
Or. Cook in Greenland. He said Cook
arrived at Annotok. in April of this
year. and declared that he had reach
cd the North Pole year before. He
pledged Whitney. however. not TO toll
Peary, who was 10 be Informed only
that Cook had gone farther north
than Peary's previous record. 81 de-
grees, minutes.
Murphy. Pcary's boatswain, who
was In charge of the stores, was alb
sent at Etah on this day and did not
hear Cooks communications.
There were two houses on the
Greenland shore. one at Annotok.
holding Cooks stores. and another at
Etah holding Pearys stores. Tho
three whitemen. Whitney, Murphy and
Pritchard, sometimes occupied one
and sometimes the other OF these
houses. He is not able 10 read or
write. He had written instructions
from Peary which Whitney, at Peary's
request read over to him from time
to time These instructions were very
stringent They directed Murphy to
use Cooks stores first and Peary's
afterwards,
Murphy was told in them that he
was to give Dr. Cook every help. If
he came along in a needy condition,
and, furthermore. the instructions inn
piled that Murphy wes TO organize an
expedition to search for DR.. Cook, but
according to Mr.. Whitney. this part
of the instructions was wordcd very
amblguouSly
MIR Whitney said that Cook had
copy OF these Instructions and would
doubtless make them public, Murphy
treated Cook very civilly and Cook
suffered no discourtesy
When Dr. Cook and his Esklmos ar
rived at the house they had no sledge
Being too tired TO drag It over the
rough ice, they had left II twenty
miles from Etah. The following day
some other Eskimos went out, rccoy-
cred the sledge and brought il In. On
II were DR.. Cooks instruments.
clothes and food
The doctor had figured out rightly
the date he would likely get TO Uper
Nayik. and when the Dundee whalers
or the Danish storeships would reach
there and he argued that he had no
time to lose. He planned originally to
take two Esklmos and two sledges,
but one Eskimo fell sick and this
made It necessary for him 90 cut down
tho luggage he could take with him
south He consequently asked Whit
ney To take charge of the Instruments
with which he had made his observa-
tions at the pole. There were three
cases, one containing a sextant. anoth-
er an artificial horizon and the third
an instrument which Mr.. Whitney said
he could not recall II possibly might
have been a chronometcr
Cook left no written records With
Whitney that Whitney Is aware OF.
There may have been some records,
however. In the other boxes in which
Cook packed his clothes and his per-
sonal effects. but Cook did not tell
Whitney especially that he was leav.
Ing any written records with him
Mr.. Whitney was very positive about
this.
After Cook departed for the south,
Whitney resumed his hunting. He
took over Cooks two Eskimos, Etukl.
shuls and Arwalalv, 10 show him tho
country where Cook had shot musk
oxen. This the two men did. and
Whitney bagged all the oxen he could
carry out In his slodges. He said
he found these two Eskimos 10 be
quite satisfactory IN subordinate ca.
paclties, but he knows nothing OF
their valuo In a dash across the polar
sea,
Continuing, Mr.. Whitney said that
last month when Peary. on board tho
Roosevelt, reached Etah from the
north after his winters work there.
he (Whitney) informed him Of Dr..
Cooks arrival in April. adding that
Cook had told him (Whitney) to tell
Pearu that Cook had gone beyond
Peary's farthest north Peary made
no comment on this. and Whitney
said he was not asked any othor Ques-
tions by Peary But the next day
Cooks Eskimos came TO Whitney and
asked him what Peary's men were
trying to get them to say
Peary's men had shown the Eski-
mos papers and maps but the Eskl-
mos declared they did not understand.
So far as Mr.. Whitney is aware,
Cooks Esklmos never admitted that