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THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



HOW TO REMEDY IT 



The suggestion is this : Cannot this So- 

 ciety, in some way, learn the facts as to 

 the ignorance of the average American 

 young man and woman on the subject of 

 geography? Secondly, having learned 

 them, cannot this Society, in some way, 

 standardize, or attempt to standardize, 

 geographical teaching ? 



I can say for one very large organiza- 

 tion of business houses that if young men 

 or women were to apply to any of the 

 150 concerns therein represented, bearing 

 some sort of a certificate that the school 

 in which they had learned geography con- 

 formed to the standards set by the Na- 

 tional Geographic Society, employment 

 would be quicker for these people and 

 wages would be higher. I make the sug- 

 gestion that something of this kind may 

 possibly, in time, be started, because 

 another scientific society, finding a similar 

 state of ignorance in another line, is now 

 attempting to formulate some standard 

 of instruction that will be country-wide. 

 At the present time, however, our school- 

 taught young men and women of 18 and 

 20 years of age do not know practically 

 enough geography to trust themselves out 

 at night alone. 



TPIE TOASTMASTER, ROBERT E. PEARY 



There is certainly much need for 

 thought in Representative Redfield's re- 

 marks. If I might venture, I would sug- 

 gest that if Mr. Redfield and others 

 would be willing to utilize their com- 

 manding positions to assist this Society 

 in the construction, either here or in New 

 York, of a great globe on a scale of i to 

 I million — which is a scale advocated by 

 representative national geographic con- 

 gresses for a universal way of the world — 

 that such globe would enable the business 

 men, the traveler, the student, and the 

 school children to keep in touch with the 

 big as well as the small details of geo- 

 graphical information, which information 

 could be transferred to this globe from 

 time to time as secured over the world, 

 thereby making the globe continuously 

 up to date. An hour or two of visual 

 work on such a globe as that would 

 count for more than days of reading of 

 geographical books. 



Across the water there is a sunny- 

 land — the birthplace of the automobile, 

 the leader of the world in aviation today, 

 a country in the front rank of every 

 sphere of human activity. The sons of 

 that country have written French names 

 within the Arctic and the Antarctic. 



The last of these, Jean Baptiste Etienne 

 Auguste Charcot, the National Geo- 

 graphic Society has elected an honorary 

 member in recognition of his splendid re- 

 searches and explorations in the south 

 polar regions. The certificate of his elec- 

 tion will be received for him by another 

 illustrious Frenchman, also our friend 

 and long acquaintance, His Excellency 

 Monsieur J. J. Jusserand, the French 

 Ambassador. 



ADDRESS BY THE FRENCH AMBASSADOR, 

 MR. JUSSERAND 



Though prevented from being present 

 at the comestible part in tonight's cere- 

 mony, I greatly desired not to miss it 

 altogether, not only because I was sure 

 Admiral Peary would speak with his- 

 wonted forceful eloquence, but because I 

 have made it a rule ever to be present 

 when Captain Amundsen is honored for 

 having discovered a pole. 



Five years ago we celebrated together 

 the deeds of this Viking's son and of his 

 good ship, Gjoa, with which he had, 

 shortly before, ascertained the exact po- 

 sition of the north magnetic pole, and 

 seconded by a crew of six men had, first 

 of all sailors in the world, navigated that 

 northwest passage vainly attempted by 

 innumerable predecessors, from the i6th 

 century to our time. 



Like the present occasion, that one was- 

 brilliant and memorable, and I am not 

 the only person in this assembly who was 

 there and still cherishes its remembrance. 

 The members of the National Geographic 

 Society were present in imposing num- 

 bers ; at different tables several explorers- 

 of fame were seated; pointing to one of 

 them, a neighbor of mine at table said: 

 "You see that gentleman with the long- 

 mustache? Many are making the at- 

 tempt, but if the North Pole is to be 

 reached by any one, it is he who will do 

 it; he is called Peary." All the world 

 now knows whether my neighbor was or 

 not a good prophet. 



