The commercial. (Union City, Tenn.) 190?-193?, 1909-10-08
Cooks Position Right.

thoroughneSS or the importantly OF TN
| investigation. When the Danish sclen
lists have rendered their decision in thu
matter it is DIR. Cook intention, h'
says, to place the data in the hands 0
the recognized geographical societies o
the world. That is entirely proper L
is a world question. A question for al
people in all times, and the fact tina
Cook and Peary are both Americans
does not give the scientific bodies OF this
country exclusive jurisdiction or righ
Of priority in determining the matter.
The efforts of the two American
scientific bodies, the Museum OF Natu'
raj History and the Geographical So,
ciety, to have the claims of both explor-
ers duly Investigated and their dispute
adjusted by competent persons, is very
commendable Prof. Ira Remsen, OF
John Hopkins University, President OF
the National Academy of Science, who
was suggested for the head of the com
mittee to make the investigation, is nc
doubt thoroughly capable and trust
worthy, but for all that, DR.. Cook hav-
ing promised the University Of Copen-
hagen the first examination OF his re-
cords, is emphatically right in abiding
by his promise. The records, when
passed upon by the Danish scientists,
will come to America in due time and
may be examined here. Besides DR..
Cooks promise to the University OF
Copenhagen, he was under peculiar OBJ
legations to the Danes, to King Freder-
ick and the Danish public, for the gen
erous hospitality and cordial treatment
given him
The fact that Greenland is Danish ter
ritory will give the Danes peculiar adj
vantages in prosecuting the work. That
they intend to know the whole truth is
evidenced by the fact that the Danish
government has already detailed Knud
Rasmussen to inquire into Commander
Peary's statement that the Eskimos
who accompanied DR.. Cook say he did
not go far from land.
But although Dr. Cook prefers to first
submit his records to the University OF
Copenhagen there is no reason why
Commander Peary should not proceed
to submit his own records to the Amer
lean scientific bodies. The London Sat
urday Review says that Lieut.. Shackle-
ton 5 story of his Antarctic exploit was
privately subjected to the severest test
before any important honors were con
ferred upon him.
There are great difficulties besetting
the attempt to ascertain correctly the
latitude at the pole The New York
Tribune says on the subject:
Nature insists that ATTITUDES of less
than % or 80 degrees are unsatisfactory.
Inasmuch as Shackleton was able to
make his most important observations
in summer, he was fortunate enough to
find the sun at considerable elevation.
On one occasion his measurements
gave height of % degrees and 80 min
utes, and there seems to be no question
that the calculations which fixed his
latitude at that time at 81 % were fairly
accurate. 1t is pointed out, however,
that on April 6, the day on which Peary
says he reached the pole. the sun would
only be trihe above the horizon, and
that on April q, the date given by
Cook for the same achievement, it
would have an elevation of II and Il
degrees. So great is the illusion due to
atmospheric refractions at these low
levels and so uncertain is the amount
of correction required for them that
they are not likely to furnish an exact
result.
For these and other reasons it is es-
sential that the records of both the
claimants to polar discovery be thor
oughly examined by scientific bodies
before any proper or unbiased conclu-
sion can be reached.
As to the proofs which Commander
Peary has said 50 confidently will de-
stroy Dir. Cooks claim, he can reserve
or print them as he pleases. In the
statement given out at Battle Harbor,
Labrador, September IA, he said: In
six months you will probably get the
whole story. 1t would not be policy
for me to enter upon full debate with
the subject as it now stands To do SC
| would be giving out much informa-
ton of which other use could be made
| intend to wait until Dr. Cook has is
sued his full authorized statement Up
to the present time there has been only
newspaper account of DIR. Cook S alleg-