The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1912-01-17
WILSON STRONG COOK ON 4 TOUR
Tie Han Who First Reached North Pole
Passes Through Columbia.
TELLS or Els JOURNEY

The Man Who Claimed to Have Dis
covered the North Pole First Talks
Of the Scenery and Surroundings
ct the Top of TIE World as Ee
Saw 1t.
81 am the man; suffered; I was
there hear this tiu etfect) first
hand from Dr.. Frederick A. Cook,
of North pole fame, was the expe-
rience of few Coiumbians on last
Friday says The State. Dr.. Cook was
in this city for about Two hours be-
tween trains, on his way from Char
lctte, where he lectured Thursday
night, to Newberry, where he gave
his illustrated north pole talk Fri
day night. 1t was In the union sta
ton that representative Of The
State found him.
He was wandering around the
waiting room, just like an ordinary
mortal, looking over the magazines
on rack and keeping his eye on the
clock so as not to miss his train. Be-
cause he is the alleged discoverer Of
the northernmost rcint Of the globe
he evidently did not expect any con-
cessions on the part of the Southern
railway, he looked not for the train
to stand and wait nj, pleasure.
The whisper had gone around that
Dr.. Cook was present, and groups Of
people stood at LITTLE distance and
looked on him as a curiosity, never
seeming to realize that, no matter
where he had been, nor what he had
done, he was just human being, az
ter all, with all that the term en-
braces of desire for: the interest Of
fellow-being and Of intercourse with
them. And so the reporter found
him approachable-not stale from
notoriety, not en- Uttered by world
arousing controversy:i in which he has
figured.
What does he look like?-that's
what everybody wants to know first
ci all. In appearance he is an ordi-
nary man. very ordinary man,
whom nobody would ever have not
iced there in the station, had his
identity not been revealed. He IS
nedium-sized; medidm fat, and mid
dle-aged. He has pleasant face, a
pair of kindly, blue eyes, not without
the suggestion OF a twinkle, and he is
rather the contrary OF what is con-
veyed by the terms, "Well set up"
well groomed," etc. In short, he
was smoke-tinged, slightly, and show
ed the effects Of travel.
But his commonplaceness ends
with his appearance, for whether or
rot he is the discoyerer Of the north
pole, he is at least the man whose
claims in that direction have aroused
worldwide controversy among
scientists, and he Is indisputably a
nan who can speak with authority
concerning the - arctic regions.
Therefore, he Is Of an interesting
personality and an interesting talker
by reason Of his -use-of the personal
pronoun, which does away with the
"hear-say" element and gives reali-
ry to what he relates.
After Dr. Cook had talked about
half and hour, he said with laugh:
You have made me speak along a
very universal line. I have answer
ed questions that are not ordinarily
put to me'-which was apparently
another way OF saying that the "hu-
man interest" side Of his expedition
had been lost sight Of in the subse-
euent controversial element, for the
world, for some time now has been
asking whether be got to the pole
not how. Therefore, when he was
asked "how," he answered with much
detail OF the far north and
the inhabitants thereof.
Do many people know that within
100 miles OF the pcle there is a de-
ightful climate, IS mild during the
summer as Thursday in Columbia
and as free Of SNOW? That the coun-
try has a vegetation all its own Of
lichens and MOSES, and that the lat
ter have beautiful flowers.
''Fresh, fragrant flowers" the doc
tor was asked
Not fragrant; nuihing in the arc
tic regions is fragrant he replied.
This statement pnssibly led up TO
another he made in connection with
the Eskimos and their mode OF liv-
ing.
There is no word in their Ian
guage for wash,' he-said. They never
hathe during their entire lives for
several reasons; first, that they have
TO water Ct's all ice). and secondly,
that they have 10 soap-they can
have none because in that country
there is no alkali with which to make
soap Soda is unknown there. so is
SALT Dr.. Cooks description Of the
houses recalled th> geography pic
lures Of their snowy discomfort and
lack OF luxury. Outside
they are just a mound of snow
blocks; inside their circled roofs are
il st high enough to allow an ordi-
nary man to stand up and the walls
Of each just wide enough apart to lie
low four fur-wrapred people to lie
down to sleep. The sole furniture is
4 snow bench orerspread with fur.
1t night each person spreads down a
FUR rug. crawls into a tur-sleeping
bag, and goes of to good, snug slum-
Der. Their lives are spent in eating
md sleeping-and the Eskimoes are