3 8o 



The National Geographic Magazine 



adoption of Eskimo methods and cos- 

 tume and the fullest utilization of the 

 Eskimo themselves. 



The advantage of my plan and route 

 are a fixed land base ioo miles nearer 

 the Pole than on any other route, a more 

 rigid ice pack extending Poleward than 

 is to be found on the opposite side of the 

 Pole, a wider land base upon which to 

 retreat, and a well-beaten line of com- 

 munication and retreat from winter 

 quarters to comparatively low latitudes, 

 which is practicable at any season of the 

 year. 



The work outlined above comprises 

 two distinct stages, viz. , the navigation 

 of the ship to the northern shore of 

 Grant Land, the traverse of the polar 

 pack with sledges from the northern 

 shore of Grant Land to the Pole and re- 

 turn. In connection with the former, 

 four ships (the Polaris, the Alert, the 

 Discovery, and the Proteus) have accom- 

 plished this feat. In regard to the sec- 

 ond, I have already made four trips in 

 those same regions, in which the aver- 

 age air-line distance from start to finish 

 was the same as the distance from Grant 

 Land to the Pole. The air-line distance 

 from start to finish of my 1 900 sledge 

 journey was such that had my starting 

 point been the northern shore of Grant 

 Land it would have carried me beyond 

 the Pole and return. I beg to state for 

 3'our consideration the following : 



The North Pole is the last great geo- 

 graphical prize the earth has to offer. 

 Its attainment will be accepted as the 

 sign of man's final physical conquest of 

 the globe, and it will always stand as 

 one of the great milestones in the world ' s 

 history. 



The attainment of the North Pole is, 

 in my opinion, our manifest privilege 

 and duty. Its attainment by another 

 country would be in the light of a re- 

 proach and criticism. 



The sense of all the foremost geogra- 

 phers, practical and theoretical, now 

 converges upon the Smith Sound or 

 "American route," along which I have 



been working for years past. Other 

 routes have been eliminated. If we de- 

 lay in preempting this route some one 

 else will step in and win the prize. 



I believe that my experience, gained 

 in years of practical work ; my special 

 methods of travel and equipment, the 

 evolution of years of practical work ; 

 my personal acquaintance with every 

 feature of my chosen route and region, 

 and my command of the full resources 

 and utmost efforts of the entire little 

 tribe of Whale Sound hyperboreans, 

 who have lived and worked with me for 

 years, give substantial reasons for antic- 

 ipating a successful outcome to an ex- 

 pedition based on the above lines. 

 Very respectfully, 



R. E. Peary, 

 Civil E?igi?ieer, U. S. N. 



The reply of Hon. Charles H. Darling, 

 Acting Secretary of the Navy, granting 

 Mr Peary's application, is as follows : 



Dear Sir : In granting 5-ou leave of 

 absence for the purpose of prosecuting 

 your Arctic work, I am moved to re- 

 mark that I believe you are better 

 equipped than any other person in the 

 country to undertake this work. You 

 have the requisite courage, fortitude, 

 and physique. You have had a longer 

 term of service within the Arctic cir- 

 cle than any other explorer. You 

 have had large experience in sledge 

 journeying, both upon the land and 

 upon the polar pack. You are familiar 

 with ice conditions through the Smith 

 Sound route and north of Grant Land 

 and the continent. You have demon- 

 strated your ability to maintain yourself 

 in that latitude for a longer period in 

 health and safety than any other ex- 

 plorer. You have reduced the incon- 

 veniences and hardships of the Arctic 

 service to a minimum. 



You are conversant with the language 

 and customs of the Whale Sound Es- 

 quimaux and are personally acquairted 

 with every individual in the tribe. 



