New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1909-10-20

PEARY'S EVIDENCE
AGAINST DR.. COOK

of Eskimos that came back from DR..
Cook from the northern end Of Nan
sens Strait. who is familiar as hunt
err with the Jones Sound region, and
who has been in Commander Peary's
various expeditions for some fifteen
years, came in and indicated the same
localities and details as the two boys.
Then the first boy was brought in
again, and with pencil he traced on
the map their route. members of our
party writing upon the chart where,
according to the boys statement. thew
mad killed deer. bear, some of their
dogs, seal. walrus and musk-oxen.
The second boy was then called in
and the two went over the chart to-
gether. the second boy suggesting
some changes as noted hereafter
Finally, Panikpah, the father. was
again called in to verify details of the
portions of the route with which he
was personally familiar.
The bulk of the boys testimony was
not taken by Commander Peary. nor
in his presence. fact that obviates
any possible claim that they were
awed by him.
Certain questions on Independent
lines from the direct narrative of the
Eskimo boys We're suggested by Com
mander Peary to some of us, and We're
put by us to the Eskimo boys.
Still later. Commander Peary asked
the Eskimo boys two Or three casual
questions on minor points that had
occurred to him.
During the taking of this testimony.
it developed that DR.. Cook had told
these boys, as he told Mr. Whitney
and Billy Pritchard, the cabin boy.
Peary or any of us anything about
their journey. and the boys stated
Dr.. Cook had threatened them if they
should tell anything.
The narrative of these Eskimos is
as follows:
They. with Dr. Cook. Francke and
nine other Eskimos. left Anoratok,
crossed Smiths Sound to Cape Sabine,
slept in Commander Peary's old house
in Payer Harbor, then went through
Rice Strait to Buchanan Bay. After a
few marches Francke and three Eski-
mos returned to Anoratok.
DR.. Cook, with the others. then pro-
ceeded up Flagler Bay, a branch of
Land through the valley pass at the
head of Flagler Bay, indicated by Com
mander Peary in 1898. and utilized by
Sverdrup in 1899. to the head of Sver.
drup's BAY Ford on the west side
of Ellesmere Land
Their route then lay out through this
ford, thence north through Sverdrup's
"Heuerka Sound and Nansen Strait
On their way they killed musk-oxen
and bear, and made caches, arriving
eventually at point on the west side
of hansen Strait (shore of Axel Hei
berg Land of Sverdrup), south of Cape
Thomas Hubbard.
A cache was formed here and the
four Eskimos did not go beyond this
point. Two others, Koolootingwah an6
Inughlto, went on one more march
with DR.. Cook and the two boys, help
ed to build the snow igloo, then re
turned without sleeping.
(These two Eskimos brought back 8
letter from DR.. Cook to Francke, dat
ed the 18th of March. The two men
rejoined the other four men who had
been left behind, and the six returned
| to Anoratok. arriving May 7th. This
| Information was obtained not from the
two Eskimo boys, but from the six
men who returned and from Francke
| himself. and was known to US in the
summer of 1908, when the Roosevelt
J first arrived at Etah. The information
is inserted here as supplementary to
| the narrative of the two boysl
After sleeping at the camp where the
| last two EskimoS turned back, DR..