The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1909-10-07

cliffs of Cape Hatherton were blaze
 of color and light, but the sea was
 refreshingly cool, with fleets of blue | towering bergs to dispel the fire of l arctic midsummer.
 As we rushed in comfort past the | ice polished and wind swept head.
 lands the sea was alive with birds,
 seal and walrus, but little shooting
 was done, for we were bent on en-
 toying the quiet sport of motorboat-
 ing.
 Arrival at Annootok. As we passed the sharp rocks of | Cairn Point we located nine tents in
 small bay under Cape Inglefeld.
 "Look-there is Annootokv said
 Tungan, our native guide. | Looking up Smith sound, we noted
 that the entire channel beyond was
 blocked with a jam of hard blue ice.
 The northernmost limit of motorboat- ing had been reached. A perpendicu-
 lar cliff served as a pier to which to
 fasten the boat Here it could rise and fall with the tide, and the drifting
 ice did, not give much trouble. A diligent exploration of the town disclosed the fact that we had reach | ed not only the northernmost town,
 but the most prosperous settlement of the Greenland shore. The best hunt CTS had gathered here for the winter
 bear hunt.
 Their game catch had been very
 lucky. Immense catches of meat were
 strewn along the shore. More than a
 hundred dogs voiced the hunt force, with which Eskimo prosperity is | measured, and twelve long haired | wild men came out to meet us as
 friends.
 The wealth in food and furs of this
 place fixed my determination on this | spot as base for the polar dash. l We were standing at a point within
 700 miles of the pole. The strongest
 force of men, the best teams of dogs
 and an unlimited supply of food, com
 bined with the equipment on board l the yacht, formed ah ideal plant from which to work out the campaign. The
 seeming hopelessnesse of the task had, | 8 kind of weird fascination for me.
 Many years of schooling in both polar
 zones and in mountaineering would
 serve useful purpose.
 Conditions Right For Dash.
 Here was my chance Here was | everything necessary conveniently l placed within the polar gateway. The | problem was discussed with my col | league MT. Bradley generously vol-c 1! unteered to land from the yacht the | food. fuel and other supplies we had | provided for local use. There was abundant trading material to serve
 as money.
 My own equipment aboard for sledge travelling could be made to serve every purpose in the enterprise. l The possible combination left abso- Iutely nothing to be desired to insure ] success.
 | Only good health, endurable wealth CT and workable ice were necessary. | The expenditure of million dollars could not have placed an expedition at better advantage. The opportu- nifty was too good to be lost We therefore returned to Etah to prepare for the quest Strong efforts had been made to reach the pole from every available quarter. Only the angle between Alaska and Greenland had been left untried. In our prospective venture we aimed to pierce this area of the globe.
 If we failed in our main effort we
 would at least make track over blank spot With the resources for transportation which the Eskimos of fered hoped to carry ample supplies over Ellesmere Land and along the west coast of the game land.
 There was reason to suppose that we would avoid the troublesome pack agitated by tue Greenland currents. The Eskimos Were willing to trust to the game resources of this region to feed and fire the expedition en route to the lands end.
 Splendid Advantages Offered. If their faith proved correct, it of fered me a series of advantages de- nied to every other leader of polar expeditions, for the movement would not only be supplied at the expense of the land which it explored, but men and dogs would be taken to the battle ground in superb training, with their vigorous bodies nourished by whole some fresh meat, not the nauseating laboratory stuff which is usually crowded into the unwilling stomach.
 Furthermore, it afforded me chance to test every article of equipment in actual field work. and, above all, after hard campaign of this kind I could select with sq1ne chance of success the most likely winners for the final race over the circumpolar sea. A compact was made with the little men of the farthest north to push the venture inro the boreal center. When 1t was noised about at Etah that prepa- rations were in progress to try for the pole most of the men on board the yacht volunteered to serve. Captain Bartlett, skipper of the John R. Bradley, said that he also would like to stay; but, if compelled to re- turn, he required at least a cook and an engineer to take the yacht back to Newfoundland.
 The situation was eased when the captain was told that but one man was wanted No group of white men could possibly match the Eskimo in his own ndS ofs ho