Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1911-09-02
Thrilling Experiences of Museum
Agents in the Country Where
Even the Polar Bears Have
ChiIIs aid Where Letters Writ
ten in March Lie in the Mail
Bag Until July Before They Are
Started Toward Civilization.


MY world of science the
three-year-old carcass of
bowhead, while slightly acrid and
bit mussy, is certainly filling. The
doctor knows because he ate, few
double portion slices. 1t was bow
head or nothing. As the doctor had
had plenty of the latter he welcomed
the bowhead.
1t was in that forlorn country, where
even the polar bears have chills, 1000
miles to the west and more than 1000
north, and then some, that he made
the choice, relates the New York
World He and V. Stefansson, as rep
resentatives of the American Museum
of National History, were UP there
staring death in the face looking for
specimens. They are now returning,
after two years absence. Stories of
their hardships have got here first.
Catching the mails is no joke up there.
To get letter in the letter box at
Macpherson in time for the July de-
livery Mr.. Stefassop wrote on March
3D. If a letter is carried around in
| ones pocket over night the folks at
home have to wait another six months
fer news.
Mr.. Stefansson and DR.. Anderson
left New York on April s. 1908. They
made their way by railroad to Edmon-
| ton, Canada, the furtherest point to
which human ingenuity and daring
had been able to push the steel rails,
| the advance agents of progress From
! Edmonton the two explorers made
| their way to Athabasca, at the head
waters of the Mackenzie, where, the
river being free from ice, they would
| nd cf, -
carry them one step further into the
wilderness of ice and snow. The mo-
ment they left the deck of the little
boat that had served their purpose to
the best of its ability the two adven-
turers plunged into the terrible fast
nessess of the great silent north.
Two Years in the Ice.
For almost two years the great
| sweeps of snow and ice hid the two
men from the rest of the world almost
as completely as the walls of a tomb
! Once an Eskimo, travelling far from
| his home down into the .haunts OF
| sturdy white folks who were fighting
for existence on the very edge OF
the arctic circle, brought with him
a story of two white men up above the
| circle. Only one other time did word
come from the men. Then, by long
and tedious sled journeys, did an Els
| kimo attached to their party carry a
letter to the daring skipper of a fish
ing smack that had literally forced its
way through the ice into the fan
north.
Now the men are making their way
slowly back, bringing with them de
tails of story the mere hints Of
which have outdone the dreams Of
writer's of fiction who love to tell Of
imaginary adventures in the froze1
north And the men who faced peril.
and hardships that would have tried
the courage and strength of the hard
est; who set out on long and painful
journeys when the mercury froze il
the thermometer. who were forced t,
camp on mountain ridges and peak
at the height of blizzards-they hav,
sent plain. impassioned report o
their journeys without giving a hin
that they encountered aught but wha
they expected when they left New
York
Hardships of the Trip.
It would require far more spac
than the limits OF this article permi
to give more than mere skeleton O
the story of the two years trip. as
is now in the possession of DR.. HI. c
Burnpus. director of the Museum Q
; Natural History, who authorized tn
expedition When the men themselve
arrive they will fill nNwith detail III
| story of periods of ten days and NOR
that often elasped without a morsel q
sustaining food passing their lips. an
which they dismissed with singl
sentence in their preliminary report.
In many respects the trip of MI
Stefansson and DIR. Anderson sun
passes any other expedition ever mad
into the north by white men. The df
ficulties with which they had to cor
[ tend, because of the very nature G
their journey. exceeded even thos
which confronted Commander Pear
on his dash to the north pole Hi
was hurried trip across several hui
dred miles of ice to the pole an
back Carefully constructed sled
drawn BIZ the finest Eskimo dogs 1