The Nenana daily news. (Nenana, Alaska) 1918-1921, 1918-08-28
ARCTIC EXPLORER
WILL RETURN TO
LAND OF ESKIMO
Explorer Stefansson Still Confident
of Finding White Eskimos
In Arctic Regions

All will remember that when
Vjaldmar Stefansson left Victoria
six years ago on the Inflated Karluk
for the North, that he went under
the patronage of the Canadian gov
eminent, partly for the purpose of
geological exploration, but mainly
with the idea of finding the race
of white Eskimos that Stefansson
firmly believes are living somwhere
in the Arctic Circle. An interview
had with him at Fort Yukon re-
Gently by a tourist, brought from
Stefansson the fact that although
his last trip to the north did not
end successfully, he is still of the
same opinion and intends going back
sometime soon to make a final at
tempt to locate them. He bases
his argument of their existence on
the fact that all Eskimos and In
dians are of Mongolian stock; orr
ginally having migrated to this con-
tinent thousands of years ago. Eth
nologists now universally agree that
the Firms, who are white in color,
are nevertheless of the Monaghan
race, and Stefansson believes that
this white race of Eskimos will
prove to be of this Finnish stock
or somewhat similar, yet of Mongo-
liam type. This idea, advanced by
the average person, would not be
considered by scientists; but Stef-
ansson was for years a professor
of ethnology and archaeology at
Harvard, and for that reason his
hypothesis in the matter carries
weight. 1t is not generally known,
but Stefansson was raised in Iowa,
afterward went to Harvard with the
intention of taking the Divinity
course, but gave this up when he
became interested in ethnology. His
exploring trips have always been
with the purpose of trying to add
to the scientific data already avail
able along these lines.
His last trip toward the Pole was
fraught with many misfortunes
The karluk, his supply boat, was
crushed in the ice; he lost many OF
his crew by sickness; was for q
long time considered dead himself
by the outside world; but final,
was found ill with typhoid pneu
monia. Early this spring a rescue
party brought him from Hersche
Island to Fort Yukon overland witt
a dog sleigh, a distance of nearl,
six hundred miles. During this en-
tire trip he was in such a weakened
condition that all food had to b,
placed in his mouth, he not havin.
| the strength to place it there him
self. His temperature on the en-
tire trip averaged 1O4, and h
weighed only 123 pounds on his ar
rival. At the present time he tip
the scales at 1856, feels fit in ever,
respect and is leaving Fort Yukol
this week for New York City, wher
he opens lecture tour under tn
auspices of the American Red Cros
on October 6, at Carnegie Hall
Following this tour for patriotic Dur
poses, he intends to make a gen
eral lecture tour under the manage
ment of Lee Keedick, of the Ameri
can Geographical Society. Within
two years he hopes to be again OF
his way north in a final attempt l.
prove to the world the theories h
has advanced.
When told by his interviewer tina
the government were contemplatin,
the use of caribou skins for cloth
ing for aviators, he offered som
valuable information along that line
During his entire trip this style o
clothing has been worn by him ex
clusively. It should interest tn
average person Outside to kno,
that in the coolest Areti, winter
the total weight of Stefansson'
wearing apparel was fen mounds