The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1909-10-06
Letter from Or. Cook.

Ottawa, Ont, October captain Ber-
nier of the Canadian steamer Arctic today
made public letter written to him bv
Dr. Frederick A. Cook on May % and de-
livered TO Captain Bernier on September
l at Upernavik, Greenland
The letter opens:
MY Dear Captain: / have to write YOU
the first letter after having been sealed
behind ice barriers for two years. It was
your supplies, SO kindly left in charge
of Mr.. Whitney. which aided me great
ly in getting to Upernavik All my other
property should be taken by Peary under
the guise of relief station for DR..
Cook. Murphy the man In charge of
the station, however. was instructed NOT
to engage in any relief efforts not to
allow Eskimos To cross and search until
| March Of the following year, 1909 NV
large stores of supplies and my station
were used for barter with natives to
satisfy Peary's commercial greed
Fortunately, we were able to work out
our problem without relief efforts ex-
cept as you offered We have pushed into
the boreal center and picked up the polar
prize, but the effort was dangerous be-
yond conception
THE splendid assistance which YOU
have given and the lberality of the
Canadian government in sending the shin
Is happy contrast to the hindrance and
injustice Of one of my own country
men,
Journey to the Pole.
Describing the journey to the pole Dr.
Cook said:
no
IL. 1905 We crossed Elesmere land pushed
along its western coast to the polar sea
FEEDING ten Eskimos and 1OS dogs en- route
on musk oxen and bears
From 81 north l started with but two
young Eskimos and &c dogs pulling two
sleishs and supplies for so days, The ice
was fine after crossing "a degrees Crack
ers land was sighted and passed and a
new land found to the north of it extend
ing to 50 degrees. Beyond no land was
seen The pole was reached April u
1908. The return was forced slightly west
ward ON the northern route but about so
degrees we drifted east and south. Be-
low S4 we had drIfted with an active pack
Carried to the West.
we We're helplessy carried to the
West unable to reach our caches along
Nansen sound. We were pushed into
Prince Gustave sea with food and fuel
eNhduSttu. sun unable 10 press eastward
we went with the ice to the south, food
and fuel now exhausted Polar bears
came to our rescue life savers We
then went into Wellington channel hon.
ing to be able to reach wha1ers in Lam
caster sound. but we were soon stopped
by failing food supplies and young small
Ice. With no game this short route to
an early ship was no longer possible and
TO satisfy the pangs of hunger we worked
to Jones sound. Here, after a long run
OF hard adventure by boat and sledee a
cruel necessity forced use into winter
camp in September at Cape Sparbo with
out fuel or food, ammunition or clothing.
with no dogs. no guns. Our situation was
almost hopeless. but fortune came our
way. Bows and arrows, harpoons. lances
and other implements made The
musk oxen and bear were taken with
lines. The lance and knife secured ia
small game. Foxes were trapped wal
ruses and seals attacked and secured in
our little folding canvas boat An un-
derground camp was built and the winter
of lSoS-l90e passed with taste of every
thing save fresh meat
No Food or Salt.
For we had not morsel Of civilized
food not even salt. new equipment
was devised and as soon as the sun of
1909 rose over the hills of north Devon we
.
dragging dried musk oxen meat as food
and melted tallow as fuel for 30 days on
our sledges. Deep snow, bad ice, open
water and continued storms made the re.
turn slow and arduous,
We reached Annatok after run of
hard luck ON April 5. Here we were met
by Whitney. only to find that Peary's
men had misused our station with its
equipment under the protection of Mr..
Whitney. We enjoyed good health at ali
tines
Cook at Pittsburg.
Pttsburg, October 5-F'aeing an audi
ence which packed Duquesne Gardens
from pit to dome, Or. f. A. Cook the
Brooklyn physician and explorer. tonight
talked from notes concerning his trip to
the north pole and commented on his re-
ception in Pittsburg, which he declared
riyalled in warmth any previous event of
the kind he had experienced outside of
New York.
DR. Cook was very hoarse while deliv-
ering his lecture, and 1t was with Difficult