Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1918-08-28
STEFANNSON, ILL,
ENDS 5-YEAR TRIP
Arctic Explorer Has Put New Con-
tinent on the Map; Will
Soon be Home.

Juneau, Alaska, Aug 27.-VilhJalmur
Stefansson, Arctic explorer and discoverer
of the Blond Fskimos," was at Circle
City last night on his way up the Yukon
and to the outside via Juneau and south
eastern Alaska, according to advices re-
ceived here today.
Washington, d. C., Aug 2S-Vilhial-
mur Steiansson, discovcrer of the "blond
Eskimos, has spent over five. years cx-
ploring and studying barren Arctic wastes
for the Canadian government.
4 new continent or large island was
found bv Stefansson on the trip Just
closed This new land is north of Prince
Patrick Island and was found in 1914.
Illness FASTENED the end of the ex-
petition Reports received from Stefans-
son in 1917 said he hoped to ma ke further
explorations in 1918 and 1919 and end
his travels in 1920 Instead OF going
northward, however, Stelansson spent
most of the 1918 summer In a hospital at
Fort Yukon, Alaska, just inside the
Arctic Circle, recovering from an attack
of typhoid, which brought him inland
from the Arctic in March, 1918.
Stefansson last saw the outside world
when he sailed from Victoria, Is C., June
Il. 1913, at the head of an expedition in
search of new lands which had been re-
ported to have been seen far to the north
of any explored area He also intended to
study the topography and ocean currents
of the north and gather flora and fauna.
One of his original party was Captain
Robert Bartlett. who had been Rear
Admiral r. f. Peary's Arctic sailing
master. Another was Dir r. NJ Anderson,
with whom Stefansson had studied at he
University Of Iowa About n score of the
men who left with Stefansson have died
from various causes, among them suicide,
exposure and disease.
When the expedition left it was aboard
the karuk, an old steam whaler On its
arrival at Nome, Alaska, Stefansson
bought other boats and sent DIR Ander-
son and a number of the party TO the
Coronation Gulf country 20 study the
land and tho natives The main cx-
petition continued north in search Of
new shores
After the kariuk, carrying Stefansson,
rounded Point Barrow. up al the corner
Of the continent, il was grlpped by the
ice and apparently frozen IN for the
winter. Stcfanss0n and four companions
went ashore to hunt When they returned
the karuk had been carried away by 8
storm
Stefansson, believing the men aboard
under Captain Bartlett, were safe, dis
missed the loss Of the karluk as an IN
cidcnt and set out eastward afoot Tn,
karluk. II was learned later, was carrie,
westward by the ice and crushed by The
foes east Of Nrangcll Island, which Il
north OF western Siberia The men tool
TO the ice and several were never seer
again Pressing eastward. StefanssoI
spent the 19 3-l4 winter with the Ander
son party and in the summer Of 1914 dis
covered the new lands. The 1915 an'
1916 summers were spent exploring ant
mapping the country. For almost tw
wears nothing was heard from Stefanssol
and il was believed he was working HI
way eastward Suddenly he appeare'
near Herscbal Island of the Canada
| Arctic Coast, in 1913. and reported h
! had found more new islands
| One of the secondary objects OF Stefans
/ son trip was TO navigate the northwes
| passage to the Atlantic and end has trl
| with An ascent of the st. Lawrence Rive
| 10 Montreal in 1917 or 1918. In this h
! failed for reasons not clearly determined
| Although the war had not started whe
| Stefansson left, in 1919 he plans TO ente
, war work. according 10 reports. and WI
/ tour the United States and Canada glvin
/ lectures for the benefit Of the Red Cros
Although he hopes to 60 back 10 th
| Arctic, he has no definite plans