Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-05-05

But then, That is the North. one Is
obliged. by the absence of any kind of
established communication, to depend
largely upon a lucky chance for getting
to ones chosen destination. And the
natives, being more or less like children,
had probably merely assumed, blithely
and optimistically, that something would
turn up to solve their problem-and it
did. 1T" was ourselves in this particu-
lar case.
With such heavy cargo as We now
had on board, and so many additional
passengers, We dared not attempt the
return crossing to Whalen by the direct
route. So going north, we Rugged the
Alaskan shore, and crossed by the Do
medes-Big and Little-to East Cape.
From there we continued on our way,
keeping under the lee of the cape's big
bluff.
1t was as risky a bit of sailing as I
ever want to undertake. We had no
sooner entered the Arctic Ocean than
1t set out to show us it could live up
to its reputation. The schooner was
badly strained by her overload. and as
the propeller had been damaged in
fighting ice and we had not been able to
repair it at Nome or put in the new
propeller we carried for an emergency,
things looked more than little pre-
carious for a while.
some one on board asked one of the
Eskimo women how she would like to
see the country We came FROM
America.
She said emphatically: mo, no, too
much hot!" And her companions all
agreed with her that the heat would
undoubtedly kill them, or at least, make
them very sick. It was an amusing
conception of what they term outside"
in which I found all the natives met
heartily concurred.
ON our arrival at East Cape we
~ thankfully shed our ESkimos, their
dogs, and the whale boat. 1t was GER
tainly relief to get that part of the
business successfully over and done
with we then rounded the big, rocky
cape itself, and so made our way back
to Whalen, having little trouble with
ice on the way, though not enough to
block us at any point.
At Whalen trouble of different sort
was waiting for us. Nechepoorenco ap-
peared to have entirely forgotten all his
former anxiety on his peoples behalf.
He utterly diSregarded the inconven-
fence and danger we had undergone
to obtain his supplies; and after much
talking led nowhere, 1t soon became APP
parent that he was prepared to dis
regard shamelessly all the terms of
our agreement.
The reason for this, we later learned,
was that the schooner ChukotSk had
come down from Cape Nord during our
absence at Nome and was then at Ma
tan. From her Nechepoorenco believed
he could obtain the supplies he needed.
and on more advantageous terms, since
she would be going out of the Arctic
"A m rot nf
all Superfuous goods and provisions.
Nechepoorenco was not what one
would call reliable. We found during
our stay in that part of the world that
the word or agreement of one of his
type Is never good until the deal Is an
accomplished fact. That we had risked
not only our schooner but lives as we'll
to accommodate him and his people
mattered nothing to him in comparison
with the chance of saving few dollars
Of barter by buying from the Chukotsk,
leaving us stuck" with the Nome cargo
bought up on his order, and because Of
his lmploring requests.
The following morning our engineer
reported that our fuel tanks were get
ting low. Out of cur original store of
1000 gallons of fuel oil We had already
consumed 1000. We must make the re-
naming 1000 count, at all costs, and
use our sails instead of our engines
whenever possible.
However, we could shift to sail almost
entirely if put to it, for the wind was
one thing we never lacked in those
stormy regions at the top of the world
The principal worry with which we were
faced at the moment was the ungrate-
ful--not to say dishonorable-at
of Acting Gov" Nechepoorenco in try
ing to crawl out of his bargain.
We finally had to make second
agreement to get rid of the Nome stores,
and that ended the business keeping us
at Whalen. AS the weather was still
fair. and the ice held off shore by the
wind, we put to sea at 8 that evening.
X X
HAD found at Whalen an old friend
native boy whose cheerfulness
and splendid physique had won my adj
miration at the commencement of the
angeles David"
We had left him at Whalen on our
trip vest and he seemed to have fallen
into bad hands, for when he came down
to the schooner to beg us to take him
back to his home in Sanivina he was
hungry and sick-poiSoned by bad alco-
hol given him by some Jap traders.
These same Japanese were afterWard
drowned in a drunken brawl near
Whalen, and seeing what they had done
to my splendid David" I could not
find 1t in my heart to regret their TAX
ing off.
We fed and doctored the boy to the
best Of our ability, and due to his mag
nif1cent health and physical strength he
came through all righ-