Evening star., 1939-08-06
Famous Explorer
Values Life in
The ArciS
Intelligence Of High
Order Required
For Survival
Continued From Page C-5)

visions and 400 rounds Of ammu-
milton, and when four months had
passed with no return of the little
trio the Eskimos had shaken their
heads knowingly. When six months
had passed they knew he was dead,
and at the end Of the year they
had consigned him ito the fishes"
When a party one and a half years
later found him one early morning
on the coast Of Banksland the skip
per's first exclamation was an urgent
invitation to breakfast. Il have the
finest cook afloat," he had urged
excitedly. How hungry you must
bel"
But I was neither dead nor hum.
gry," affirmed Stefansson. "I had
already breakfasted well. I was
averaging 1000 pounds of meat to
every round Of ammunition by
shooting only seal and polar bear
and by always sighting lying down
with my rifle supported"
"And the fresh water?" we queried.
1T has long been known that old
ice is honeycombed and the ex-
pansion and contraction presses out
the SALT which might be compared
to the honey in the comb. The
water on the surface is quite fresh.
1t can be syphoned of, even.
Shipwreck Experience.
"You see the most fortunate thing
that ever happened to me was being
shipwrecked one year in the Arctic
when spent some II months living
in the igloos with the Eskimos. At
first my life was only initiative, but
gradually, by determined concentra-
ton, I mastered their language.
No, it is not simple or primitive
language" he said in reply to our
query. 1T is rich, on the contrary,
and concise. Built on Latin syntax
with nominative, genitive, dative,
accusative and ablative cases, it Is
capable of expressing every shade
OF meaning. 1t has 10000 words
In the average vocabulary, twice the
number that President Wilson used
in his state papers. The mentality
Va oAAC A1ohAiAo 10 Inc IlldU VI GIlc
Chinese. His mind is orderly and
profound.
1T was but a step from living
with them to building our own igloo.
Never dull moment-fishing, hunt
ing, especially the seal, for it fur,
nishes the native with food, light,
clothing. The seal is to the Arctic
what the reindeer is to the Alaskan"
He paused ref1ectively and digressed.
You know, in addition to the REIN
deer furnishing ample and excellent
meat there are hides for aviators'
clothes and gauntlets. The hair,
being hollow, is so buoyant that
its value in life-preservers equals
that of cork" Then resuming his
original thought, he added: Speak
ing of light, some people do not
stop to consider blubber will not
burn without wick The Eskimo
has found that the dried bone of
seal furnishes an excellent one"
Tells Of Dog Fights.
And then, as a break in the
monotony, especially of night, is the
dog fight" he added feelingly. I'VE
love our dogs and they are vital
! to us, of course. A few moments
delay in reaching the victim of a
dog fight and the combined ferocity
of the pack will have dispatched
him pitilessly. On retiring we take
turns or draw lots as to who at
the first intimation of fight will
jump from his sleeping bag and rush
into the Arctic cold outside to the
rescue. To delay even long enough
/ to put on a parka would be dis
astrous. AS the allotted rescuer
struggles with the rolling, swapping,
snarling mountain of fur, the re-
mainder throw on their clothes and
relieve the first quite naked volun-
teer who repairs to the igloo. dresses
and returns to the fray. No, life
Is not dull, nor necessarily dan
gerous in the Arctic" concluded
Stefansson, "but one must know"
And does he know!" added our
host who was not to be denied a
final reminiscence which Stefans-
sons modesty had not permitted.
when Lindbergh made his flight
to Japan 1t was to Stefansson that
he turned for last-minute sugges-
tions
How about your amber glasses?"
asked Stefansson.
II have smoked Ones" replied
Lindbergh. =
They will not do. The ice from
tiers will blur. You can only see
them distinctly with amber"
II could not have made the trip"
conceded Lindbergh gratefully on
his return, but for Stefansson's
suggestion"
Incidentally. what Stefansson
knows about the Arctic has reached
to date a manuscript Of 10000
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