Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1920-02-04
Frederic Haskin's Letter
THE LURE OF THE ANTARCTIC
lspsesal ceesspsadsnes Of n ArssI),

NE ANlANNlN
struggle than run away and live to
fight another day.
To the good citizen who reads
about 1t in his newspaper, sitting
before . warm fire with his pipe in
his mouth and his dinner digesting
comfortably, there IL something in
credible and unreal about this
whole business Of polar explora-
ton. He thinks 1t makes fine read
ing but at bottom he regards the
explorers - q pack OF fools. He
cannot comprehend their motives.
With all due respect to the glory
Of being first to get there, and the
value to science Of knowing what
kind Of fish swim the Arctic seas.
he does not see why these things
should induce a man to face star
walton, freeze OF a couple Of toes
and perhaps die . most uncomfort-
able death. He puts another chunk
Of wood on the fire, refills his pipe.
and says that he guesses they can
have it.
But there are some things to be
found in the polar regions that he
has not considered. One OF these
is freedom-the freedom to struggle
against a mighty opponent without
any of the 'innumerable and annoy
ing little checks and hindrancee
that beset our every day civilized
life. Most of US have SO long and
completely lost our freedom that
We have forgotten what it is like. In
fact most of us never had any. The
law and the opinions of other
people and the need for making a
living and a hundred and one Gus
toms and conventions bind US on
every side. We do not what we
want to do but what We must do.
We appear to be active and moving,
but We are really running in
grooves, like the balls at a bowling
alley, and have no more independ-
ent motion than they. We struggle,
but ingloriously against petty and
annoying things, such as colds and
taxes and mothers-in-law and cost
of living and the servant problem.
There is not much zest in such
struggles. We middle through
them as best we can and we con-
sole ourselves with comforts
equally petty-with hot baths and
tobacco and soft beds and good
food. Most of US have completely
forgotten that the real destiny Of
every living organism is to struggle
against overwhelming odds and
then to die. Most of us have even
forgotten that We are going to die
We take out life insurance policy
and feel that We have then at
tended to the matter of death once
and for all. We do not like to heal
the undertaken mentioned.
But men who have gone into far
wild places, provided they are
strong, have realized this law Of
struggle in its utmost simplicity
and nakedress. They have learned
that a clean cut struggle and per.
feet freedom are the best that any
man may hope for, and thai
whether the struggle ends in deatt
or success does not matter because
death is always just few jump:
ahead of us anyway. That is why
men who have once been to The
polar regions always want to e
back, because they like it and il
is hard for them to talk or think Of
anything else.
1t is not primarily a love O.
science, nor yet a barren desire t.
i, look at a spot which no one else ha.
seen that leads them on their brave
quests. 1t is love Of the freedom
and the struggle which such ques
gives. Anyone who reads CAREFUL,
! the personal stories of explorers il
the Arctic or any other great viii
derness will be convinced of that
and any man who has known thu
freedom of a wilderness can under
stand it.
F, Not long ago young man whit
had been on several Arctic expedi
tons made speech before a mum
Der of newspaper men in behalf O
another expedition which he hoped
to lead into the north. He blushet
and stammered and made nothinl
clear except that he was a good fel
low and could not talk on his feet
But afterward couple of til,
scribes had lunch with him and b,
really numbered.
Il want to get back there" h,
said. Il don't like it here-its no
and stuffy and there's nothing to d,
worth doing. I'll be happy whe,
my ships frozen in, and l can ge
to work."
And the Incredible fact was born,
in upon his listeners that this ma,
who had seen ship crushed be
tween icebergs, who had know
frost bite and starvation and nigh
six months long and had seen crev
asses swallow men and dog teams
wanted to get back to the scene O
these disasters, wanted to fac,
them again simply for the sake o
doing it. And they shook thei
heads and went back to their gam,
Of dominoes.
The polar explorers may brin,
back proof that the Antarctic is al
one big continent, and that will b.
fine. But they will bring back
above all, what they have Away
brought-proof that the huma,
spirit is the biggest thing on earth
thai it dares to attempt the impos
sible and holds death q mino
hazard.