Connecticut western news., 1909-09-09
DIR. COOK FINDS NORTH POLE
Attains Worlds Apex In Winter Dash
 Across Ice.

Attains Worlds Apex In Winter Dash
 Across Ice.
 Copenhagen, Sept. S-Dr. Frederick A. Cook. the American explorer, who sent word from Lerwick, Shetland is- lands, that he attained the north pole on April 21. 1908, was received here by Crown Prince Christian of Den mark. Maurice Egan, the American minister; the Danish minister of com merce and committees from various public bodies, the party greeting the discoverer before he disembarked from the Greenland steamer Hans Egede.
 At the banquet in Dr. Cooks homer 600 representatives of the highest and best in official and civil life in Copen- hagen were present. Seventy-fve Americans attended.
 Minister of Commerce Hansen in proposing the health of pr. Cook spoke unreservedly of the discovery of the pole. This was the note of all the speakers. There was no hypothesis. The discovery was absolutely ac- cepted.
 In a speech in response to a toast drunk in his honor Dr. Cook said:
 "The most important factor in reach ing the pole is the Eskimo and his dog. It is a system of travel with which the Danes have been familiar for 200 years. Much that we knew has been borrowed from the Danes. ] The EskimOs in this case are those of the extreme north, the little men of Cape York, for whose uplift the kind ly hand of the Danish state is doing so much, flor which the whole world cannot be too grateful.
 II can only say that if I had not found just the right men, just the right dogs and just the right food in i Greenland I should never have reach ed tine pole. Greenland is near Ameri- ca. We are therefore neiGhbors. and I owe much to the Danish state for my success"
 King Frederick >honored the explorer later by having him as guest at din ner at the royal palace of Charlotten- hund. The queen and all the members of the royal family were present. and ! the American explorer had the seat on 1 the kings right hand.
 ! Starting from Annotook on Feb. 10, l 1908. Dr. Cook left behind the only re- maining white man in the party, Ru 1 dolph Francke. who returned south. l The expedition had eleven men, 1O3 dogs and eleven heavily laden i sledges. They left Greenland and i pushed westw ard over Smiths sound i The temperature was S3 degrees below zero when the expedition crossed the ! heights of Ellesmere sound, and sev- | eral dogs were frozen to death. i ' On March 30 the observations gave ] latitude S4 degrees 1T minutes, longi- | tude S6 degrees 3G minutes. ] Finally q strip of land 30,00O square miles in extent was discovered. On the morning of April 21 the pole was
 in sight. The suns altitude gave 80 ] degrees 8 minutes 4G seconds. The l party quickly advanced the fourteen i seconds. and Dr. Cook stood at the north pole. The American flag was
 planted and the long sought for pole
 became United States territory. A
 tube containing statement by Dr.
 Cook was buried beneath the flag.
 From the hour of midnight until
 midday the latitude was 90, the tenn
 perature S3 and the barometer 29.S3.
 They remained two days to take re-
 peated observations to prove their cor
 rectness.
 They built an underground house at
 Cape Sparbo, where they remained un-
 til the sunrise of 1909.