Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-12-22
Faker! Self-Fooled! Madman! Honest!
Varied Comments Of Friend and Foe
Many Who Believed in Explorer Cook Abandon
Faith, Few Still Loyal, and Those Who Ac-
cused Him Triumph in His Discontinue

| In dppOlIltlng COOK an honorary uoSeOi
did not mention that he actually reached
the north pole. The brief says, Qua
mundi explorandi causa tot labores per-
tulisti-' Cook has taken disgraceful ad-
vantage of small nations kindness. US
| ing a clever trick in securing the patron
age of the American President. Minister
Egan and the explorers. Our findings
| have knocked Cook DOWN, simultaneously
exposing ourselves to malicious jeering.
Our previous credulity. tantalizing as 1t
is. is in part shared with his country
mems bestowal Of the freedom Of New
York city upon him.
| Commodore Gustav Holm, Danish ex-
ploler and MEMBER of the investigating
committee: Cooks claim that he made
the observation eighty-nine degrees fifty
| nine minutes forty-six seconds near the
pole proved Immediately that he was a
bad observer but nothing indicated that
he was a swindler. Now his papers con-
Wet him of being a swindler. We ex-
amined Cooks observations first, and
agreed unanimously that they were
worthless: Loose's observations were not
used in the papers Cook submitted to the
university
Prof. Olufson. secretary of the DANISH
| Geographical Society: 1T is the saodest
event in my life. AS an explorer there
seems to be no uoubt that Cook Is alb
solutely unreliable. 1 admit that. fol-
lowing the general rules, we did not ask
| for documents. We took Cooks word
as bond that was backed up by nearly
all of the arctic authorities of which
many were present here. We must be
| careful not to repeat the error
Prof. SelOmOnsen, rector Of tho Uni
versity of Copenhagen: I'VE have acted
inexcusably in bestowing the. highest
| ever, Prof. Torp, the previous rector, had
his own way: Personally. expected a
poor show Of the records, but this ex-
ceeded my expectations. AS a small con-
ISOLATION. I am pleased at hav-ng stopped
| the undergraduates intended torchlight
parade in Cooks honor"
Prof. Pechule of the University ct
Copenhagen faculty. The university is
now done with Cook. We leave the rest
| to America"
Knud Rasmussen, explorer, formerly
Cooks warmest supporter: Il was fab
bergasted upon seeing the records. The
university would not call me at first be-
cause / was one Of DR.. Cooks strongest
| vited to the investigat on, and when I
saw the observations / realized it was a
| scandal. My confidence in Cook had
been based on personal Impressions. on
the testimony Of the Esquimos. when
they all said that he had made the trap
from Cape Sparbo to Etah, and such a
trip during the dark of W inter- would
suffice to make man famous. But the
papers which Cook sent to Copenhagen
University are most impudent. No school
boy could make such calculations. It is a
most childish attempt at cheating. Cook
has killed himself by his own foolish
acts"
Commodore HovEaard, Danish ex-
plorer: Although it has not been proved
that Cook d not reach the pole, I can
only regard Cook now as an impostor. l
am deeply disappointed. having been
Cooks principal supporter and introduced
him to the king"
Prof. Frede, the German traveller: 1T
Sc IL, G.: jLu -
Roald Amundsen, Norwegian explorer:
"Nonoas couid 4eel more so-Iow at tn.
commissions crushing statement than
myself. for l had learned to. appreciate
DIR. Cook as devoted friend and hon
est man. The important question Is
whether he is swindler or merely ig-
norant. prefer to believe that DR.. Cook
himself was confident that he had ar
rived at the north pole. This must have
been a fixed idea with him. II he is
swindling he must have changed his char
,cter in the last ten years"
DIR. Lec0inte, director of the Royal
observatory OF Brussels: Il Eau The ...us.
implicit confidence in DIR. Cook. I hat
always found him honest and upright.
but, of course. the observatory accept
sity without question. There are two
hypothesis. Either DR.. Cook. who wa.
never capable in making Astronomical
observations. may have thought honest
ly that he had reached the pole. or he i
an out and out impostor. If the second
hypothesis be true it Is the most auda
cious and objectionable imposture ever
thrust upon the scientific world. The OBJ
.losed, and probably will invite Com
nander Peary to lecture before us mem
1erS.
lieut.. Ernest H. ShackletOn, antarctic
Xplorer: Il yeoret that l am liot 40,
comment on the Cook report but
ave made it rule not to offer any
'ticism this matte at ALL
Cant. Robert A. Bartlett, commander
of Pearys ship: 1.-The Danish decision
| only confirms my own opinion. My own
WINGED me Of the impossibility Of Cooks
alleged adventure"
Herbert l.. bridgman, secretary Of the
Peary Arctic Club: When the nrst bu..
discovery by any other than Peary,
| emphatically declared the statements to
be false 1t was simply preposterous t.
think that man could tguratively cake
| walk to the frozen north, find the pole
| and lightly trip home again, when Peary
after years of struggle, had not by that
! time reached it. There is much more
| about Cooks trip in the arctic Nthat has
not come out. I don't know If it ever
| the sooner Cook and his fake are forgot
! ten the better the atmosphere will be.
Why, in the essential details, the mar
| ratives of Cook and Peary did not agree
at all. Cooks statements as to ice con-
ditions, temperature, weather, and the
prevalence of game did not agree. Cook
made a good guess and said there was no
! land at the pole. That's about the only
thing he hit right Probably he had
read up careful the narratives of ex-
| plorers who had been far north and had
| decided that ice conditions ought to pre-
| vail. 1t was only bold stroke
Capt. August ~. Loose, who claims TO
have doctored up polar records tor Cook:
! Il am not surprised to hear that Cook
| failed to make good at Copenhagen. as he
| really knew nothing about the business
| at ALL In all probability he used the
| records that Dunkle and made for him.
| We didn't make Rs cords to prove that the
pole had been discovered, but simply a
| record of progress to that point based on
! my previous records in arctic travel"
Anthony Fiala, arctic explorer: 1T Is
/ in comprehensive to me. l have be-
| lieved in DR.. Cook and thought every
one else ought to believe in him until
/ 1t was proved that he did not accomplish
| what he claimed. From the dispatches
received f.om Copenhagen 1t would APP
| tons to the University of Copenhagen.
| / believed in DR.. Cook until I found he
was unable to tell the name OF the maker
| of the sextant he used. That would be
naturally one of the things an explorer
would want to be sure of. Then, again.
| | wondered why he spent SO much time
going down to Jones sound when he had
| a cache In Ellesmere Land, which Har. y
Whitney found. Now 1t looks to me as