Newspaper Articles From The Period

thing was done for notoriety,” the Commander went on to say, “ and I have never heard any more about the suit since I left Berlin.”

On his trip abroad, which commenced 11 on April 28, Commander Peary said that he had lectured in London, Berlin, Rome, Vienna, Budapest, Brussels, Antwerp,  Edinburgh, Glasgow, Cardiff, Bristol, and Manchester. He delivered two lectures in London and Berlin and one in each of the other cities.

“ I met Mr. Roosevelt in London and in Berlin,” said the Commander, “ and had a pleasant conversation with him. He was the principal celebrity in Europe and was received everywhere with tremendous enthusiasm. I had a conversation with King George V. on the subject of arctic and antarctic expeditions and discovered that he was well informed on all questions connected with the attempts to reach the poles.”

“ Do you contemplate leading an expedition yourself to the south pole? ” he was asked.

“ No,” replied Commander Peary, “ I tried hard last year to get up an American expedition to the antarctic, but could not raise sufficient funds and the scheme fell through.”

“ Do you think that Capt. Scott has a good chance of reaching the south pole? ”

“ Yes. he stands a first-rate chance because there now is a blazed trail to within 100 miles of the pole, made by Capt. Scott and Sir Ernest Shackleton. You see It has a great advantage over the north pole, as in the antarctic regions Winter quarters can be fixed either on the land ice or on fixed ice, which never drifts. That means a gain of 50 per cent to the leader of an expedition. It Is just like a Captain going into a strange port with a pilot, and another Captain having to find his own way in without one. Capt. Scott starts out well equipped and with everything in his favor. I see no reason why he should not succeed in reaching the south pole.”

Commander Peary went on to say that  the only objection he had with his trip was that it was a little rushed. He gave twelve lectures to the various geographical societies in Europe. and five lectures on a business basis. He was invited to deliver six other lectures, but had to decline on account of lack of time. Mrs. Peary and the children accompanied him to the principal European cities. He did not see King Edward’s funeral, he said. as he was in Budapest at the time, where he attended the memorial service for the dead King.

The Commander added that the reception to Theodore Roosevelt in London was a most notable one under the sad circumstances, but if King Edward had not I died it was to have been on a much more gigantic scale, as the Londoners were all greatly interested in seeing the ex-President of the United States, of whom they had read and heard so much. Mr. Roosevelt was in splendid health when he saw him in London. said the Commander. “ He sailed a day ahead of me,” said the explorer, “ but I guess we left him somewhere astern in the fog yesterday.”

“What are your plans? ” he was asked.

“ I am going to spend a few days in New York, and then go to Bowdoin College for commencement. After that I am going to Eagle Island for a two months rest.”

observations. made by himself, Capt. Bartlett and Marvin, in support of his claim to the discovery of the north pole. This installment of Commander Peary’s story takes the party, including Capt. Bartlett, up to 87 degrees, 12 minutes, which was well beyond his previous “farthest north.”.

After giving in detail the difficulties in crossing the Big Lead and his great anxiety at this point, together with the almost hourly incidents of the party’s northward progress, Commander Peary adds:

“ The end of this march put us between 85 degrees 7 minutes and 85 degrees SO, minutes, or about the latitude of our Storm Camp of the year before.

“ Bartlett’s estimate of our position at this camp was 5 degrees 30 minutes, Marvin’s 83 degrees 5 minutes, and my own 85 degrees 20 minutes. The actual position as figured back later from the point where we were first able, by reason of the increasing altitude of the sun, to take a  definite observation for latitude was 85 degrees 23 minutes.”

Again, Commander Peary says that on March 22 he had the Eskimos build a snow wind shelter so Marvin could take a meridian altitude for latitude.

“ Up to this time,” he continues, “ no observations had been taken. The altitude of the sun had been so slight as to make observations unreliable.

“ I intended that Marvin should take all observations up to his farthest north, and Bartlett all beyond that to his farthest north. This was partly to save my eyes by just so much, but principally to have independent observations by which to check our route.

“ The result of Marvin’s observations gave our position as approximately 85 degrees 48 minutes north latitude, figuring the correction for refraction only to a temperature of minus 10 degrees F. the lowest temperature for which we had  tables.”

In addition to these detailed observations, checked and rechecked by Capt. Bartlett, Marvin, and himself. Commander Peary will give in his next installment a detailed statement of all his observations at the pole, and will place before the world the scientific proofs of his discoveries.