The North Polar Lands 
OR THE PURPOSES OF THIS LECTURE, the Arctic and the 
F North Polar Regions are not synonymous. The former 
is too limited a concept, for it includes only a thin fringe of 
the North American and Eurasian continents plus Green- 
land and the islands of the Arctic Ocean. ‘This is a sparsely 
inhabited region in which the seas are more productive 
than the lands. I shall include both the Arctic and the sub- 
Arctic within the term North Polar Lands. A. L. Wash- 
burn’ defines the southern limit of the sub-Arctic as the 
zone where the average temperature is not higher than 
50° F. for more than four months, and where the average 
temperature of the coldest month is below 32° F. While 
the Arctic is largely a region of islands and water (see 
Plate I at end) , the sub-Arctic bites off large continental 
segments of Eurasia and North America. 
The first aspect of any region that comes to mind in its 
relationship to human affairs is its role in the trade and 
commerce of the world. ‘The economic exploitation of the 
northlands followed close on the heels of the earliest ex- 
plorers who were in search of passages to India. ‘Their 
voyages revealed an abundance of whales whose exploita- 
tion established the northern seas as the major source of 
whale oil for generations to come. Ruthless exploitation 
— implemented by the development of whaling techniques 
that included explosive missiles such as propelled shoulder 
and dart guns — resulted in the rapid elimination of this 
once rich source. 
— 3 — 
