The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-11-10
FROM ice FIELDS
Prof. Parker Returns With Pic
lures and Other Data
Showing That DR.. Cook Never
Was Near the Summit.

New York, Nov. 10.-Prof. Herschel
Parker of Columbia university, who
recently returned from his exploration
of Mount Mckinley, has made public
a series of photographs taken near the
Alaskan mountain which he claims is
indiS putable evidence that DR.. Fred
erick A. Cook, the Brooklyn traveller,
never reached the top of the highest
peak in America.
Professor Parker states that he
found the mountain peak which DR..
Cook photographed and called Mount
Mckinley, "the top of the continent"
and in support of his statement, show
ed photograph of a mountain peak
taken by his expedition last summer
and pointed out that comparison of
the two photographs shows in detail
identical outlines of rock formation,
proving that they are pictures of the
same mountain.
1.-The mountain which L photo
graphed," said Professor Parker, twas
| twenty miles away from Mount Nc
Kinley, and fifteen thousand feet be-
low its summit. This is the same peak
that Cook photographed and called the
top of the continent
Professor Parker corroborates the
confession made a year ago by Edward
Barrill, guide of DR.. Cook, that they
never reached the top Of Mount Nc
Kinley.
I'VE left our boat on the Tokositna
at about the same spot where DR..
Cook and Barrill took to the ice," said
Professor Parker, who was a member
of DR.. Cooks expedition in 1906. my
idea was to follow as closely as posi-
BILE the route taken by the doctor and
we had no difficulty in doing this with
Barrills map at hand
Found the Rock.
I'm q few days our party reached
where BarrilPs picture was taken. This
was in the Amphitheater Glacier in
the foothills of Mount Mckinley, and
twenty miles from its base.
Having reached the place, the pro-
blem now confronting us was to pick
out the rock on which Barrill stood
when he was photographed with the flag
in his hands. This, perhaps, was easier
to do than one might imagine, in spite
of the fact that there were innumerable
rocky peaks on all sides of US. There
will be noticed in the lower right hand
corner of DR.. Cooks photograph a peak
in the distance, the snow formation on
the top of which should make it easily
distinguishable. 1t was therefore CON-
! paratively simple matter to identify the
peak as the second of the seven peaks
Of Ruth Glacier, only a few miles away
from where he stood. DR.. Cook has said
there are u peaks but he evidently did
not carry his investigations far enough
to discover there are only seven. Then
we soon found the rock we wanted in
the snow saddle Barrin mentioned and
| at last we were at the top of the con-
| tinent'
you will remember that Barrill
Swore that the picture in DR.. Cooks
| book captioned First five of the IL new
| peaks of Ruth Glacier was taken on
| the same day that DR.. Cook took the
famous photograph of the guide. That
! this statement was true is readily noted
In another of the pictures entitled An
amphitheater,' the rock itself on which
Barrill stood may be seen.
Photographs Duplicated.
''On account of the formation of the
snow cornice, it was impossible to pho
| tograph the rock from the exact spot
| where Dr. Cook himself stood. These
cornices are shaped according to the
| whims of the winds that blow and the
| formation varies from year to year. 1t
| will also be noted that there is more
snow in the photograph took. This
| is due to the fact that I was there in
| July while DR.. Cooks photograph was
| taken in September A considerable
amount of snow naturally would melt
| away in two summer months. But you
| can readily see that the photographs
are of one and the same rock and a
very paltry rock it is at that. [ dupli-
| Gated a number of other photographs
! in DR.. Cooks book at totally different
| points from where the doctor says that
! they were taken and these with a de-
tailed account of my expedition will be
! made public at a later date. But these
| photographs are of far less Importance
/ than that of the summit itself
After getting all the material l want
ed in this neighborhood, we pushed on
twenty miles further to the base of Nc
Kinley and made numerous attempts to
cross the northeast ridge of the mountain
But our passage was effectually cut off
/ by a p 600 foot range of ice peaks at the
| head of Ruth Glacier, which was impassa-
| BILE on account of the pinnacleS and crew
asses. DR.. Cook makes no mention of
them in his book, never having been far
| enough to see them. Then, turning back,
we went as far as possible on the south
west face of Mckinley and after reaching
| an elevation of 600 feet gave up any
further attempt to scale the mountain.
| While I regret that we were unable to
get to the top, still, we had accomplished
| the object of my mission and felt well
| satisfied with the result of the expedi-
ton
When asked what he thought of the dis
patches from Alaska in the early sum-
mer saying that Tom Lloyd had reached
| the top of the mountain, Prof. Parker
which had been attributed to him concern
| ing the latter.
II never satd,' he declared, that Tom
Lloyd did not reach McKinley's summit
What 1 did say was that although our
party got within seven miles of 1t, none
Of us could see, even with the strongest
| of glasses, the flag or pole Lloyd says
he planted there to stay. How ridiculous
therefore the statements were that the
| flag had been seen from Fairbanks, 40
miles away"
Prof. Parker in spite of his failure to
conquer Mckinley. believes that a way
/ md n "a m