New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1912-09-10
DISCOVERED A LOST
PEOPLE IN THE ARCTIC
Explorers Find Descendants OF
Scandinavian COIoniStS Last
Heard of in 1412.
NEVER SAW WHITE MEN
Dr.. Anderson and v. Stefansson
Bring Back Valuable Colleo-
ton for Museum of Natural
History of New York.

Seattle. Sept. 9-Vilhjalmar Stefansson,
after spending more than four years In
Arctic exploration. returned to Seattle to-
day by steamer from Nome, Alaska, and
told OF his probable discovery OF the do
scendants Of the Scandinavian colonists
OF Greenland. who we're last heard OF in
1872, and who, when trade with Greenland
was resumed I'm the seventeenth century,
had disappeared
Stefansson and his companion, DR.. r..
NJ. Anderson, of Forest City, Iowa. made
a valuable. geological and chronological
collection, which is now on the steam
whaler Belvedere. with DR.. Anderson, and
will arrive in San Francisco the first
week in November on the way to the
American Museum of Natural History,
New York. Stefansson will leave for
New York tomorrow night.
Stefansson reports DR.. Anderson in per
feet health. The Belvedere is now
whaling off Wrangel Island, Siberia.
During more than four years Stefansson
and Anderson were together only nine
months. as they could cover more ground
by separating.
Stefansson and Anderson went 10 the
Arctic in 1908 by way of Winnipeg, Ed
monitor and down the Mackenzie River to
its mouth They were bound for Corona
ton Gulf, a region marked on Canadian
maps as unnhabited, and which they
had been warned 70 avoid. Stefansson
spent the first winter at the mouth Of Col
vile River, Alaska; the second at cape
Barry. the third on Coronation Gulf and
Victoria Land and the fourth at Cape
Barry. o., ..-
on leaving the Arctic he made a leisure
~ journey alone with a dog team from
Cape Barry to Point Barrow, one thou
sand miles. visiting all the Esquimau set
Elements along the coast He left Barry
on March % and reached Point Barrow
on June 10 The expedition made its head
quarters for collecting at Bailey Islnnd
a resort Of whaling vessels east from the
Mackenzie River. and here the material
gathered was placed on the Belvedere'
it will not be unpseked until 1t arrives
at the New York museum.
The feature Of the collection from
popular standpoint are the skins, skulls
and leg bones of nineteen barren ground
grizzly bears. ready for mounting. only
one. barren ground grizzly is in any mu-
scum. II is supposed that bears OF Two
species are in the collection.
The barren ground grizzly attains a
weight of seven hundred pounds. 1t lives
on the thick roots of an herb. At the
approach Of winter the bear which has
taken on a four-inch layer of fat. bur
rows a hole in river bank and permits
itself 10 be covered by snow. Apparently
the bear hibernates without loss Of en-
orgy, for in April, when it leaves its hole.
the TAT is still intact. However, in April
and May there is NO food and the bear
grows thin before the herbs are obtain
able. in June
Dr. Anderson found pottery further
east than ever before known, and also
grass baskets
OF the so-called white Esquimaus of
Coronation Gulf Stefansson said:
They were taller than the Greenland
Esquimaus, but not so tall as the Alaska
Esquimaus. They spoke Esquimau,
though ] thought detected some Morse
words. and they lived in the typical Es-
Qumau way. visited thirteen groups
OF these people, who number probably
two thousand, and saw one thousand Of
them. Ten of these groups or tribes
had never. come into contact with whites
and had not even tradition of them.
Two tribes had traditions OF the Sir
John Franklin expedition. An old man
in one. tribe had seen Richardson in
1S4S and an old old man in another tribe
had seen Collinson in 1853