Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1909-02-06
TO HUNT POLE
How Meme KeeShoO Hopes to
Find Arctic Explorers Goal.
WILL STUDY SURVEYING FIRST

Only Survivor of Family Peary
Brought From Greenland to America
Thinks He Can Lead Successful Es'
kimo Expedition.
Pleased beyond measure with his
success in obtaining n scholarship Mt
Manhattan college, New York, Meme
Keeshoo, the only north Greenland
Eskimo living in n civilized country
and the sole survivor of the first Els
klmos brought to the United States by
Commander Peary in 1898, was con-
tending the other night ut the Grand
Union hotel, in New York, with a
number Of conflicting emotions First,
and perhaps foremost, is his ardent
desire to return to his native country
and with an expedition composed en-
tirely Of Eskimos to reach the north
pole.
Meme, who is eighteen years old, is
typical Eskimo, with Il decidedly yell
low skin, almond shaped eyes and jet
black hair With all that Meme is a
handsome boy.
Asked what was his idea in taking
a college course and how such an edu-
cation could be utilized in Greenland,
Menes face frightened at the mention
of the icebound continent.
81 would like to return to my people
and see if | could help them. | have
never forgotten my people, although |
have not seen them since | was taken
from my playmates when | was six
years old and brought by Commander
Peary to New York"
When it was pointed out to him that
there would appear to be little or no
demand for the activities Of civil en-
gineer in Greenland he said
my people-they always have tried
to help the white man reach the pole.
! White men have not reached it prin-
cipally because the Eskimos will never
tell the white man all they know. The
Bskimos don't know today what Com
mander Peary Is looking for. He ISM
able to explain it to the Eskimos
They have no knowledge of geography
They see his ship and think it from
some fairyland filed with crackers and
coffee.
"Now, 1 think can find the pole
after get my civil engineering knowl-
edge First l will go back to Green
land and learn my language again. My
people would tell me things they would
tell to no white man about the best
way to reach the north pole. They
don't know how great thing it would
be to find it. but l can tell them all
, that and make them understand that
the only way to reach the pole Is to
hunt for it until we find it, Too much
time is spent now by explorers coming
back to the United States to tell peo-
pie how cold it is up there and how
they had to buck the ice. The Eski-
mo knows it is cold up there, but he
is used to it, and he doesn't know any
thing about writing books about the
north The only way to find it is to
go as far-as possible one season, make
a permanent camp there instead of
coming back to write a book or maya
zine article, and push farther the
next season. That's what | want to
do, and l believe with an expedition
of my own people | can do it. The Els
kimo doesn't know how to lecture.
can learn how to read instruments so
that ! can know when | have found
the pole, and the Eskimos will stick to
me until do find it. There is a lot of
time lost in coming back to the United
States to talk about the fee.
mot only do want to be the one to
discover the pole, but | also want to
explore the vast unknown tracts of
Greenland, which has more country un-
explored by man than any other land
l also want to write a history Of my
people and of Greenland and believe
can get much from them in the way OF
folklore and ancient customs"
1t was this realization of the fact
that he must take course In survey
ing to enable him to ascertain his eX'
act position on the earth which decided
him in the matter of accepting the
scholarship obtained for him by Harry
v. Radford, an arctic explorer.
Mr.. Radford said: 81 have known
Meme only few days, but have every
confidence in him. do not think it is
too much to say that he may be q
verltable Moses among his people-oI
should we say PearyT
"Just let 1t rest Mt Meme" said Meme
with grin.