﻿A 
  MEMORIAL 
  TO 
  PEARY 
  

  

  6-41 
  

  

  peditions, 
  was 
  the 
  guest 
  of 
  special 
  honor 
  

   at 
  the 
  ceremonies. 
  

  

  Captain 
  Robert 
  A. 
  Bartlett, 
  explorer 
  

   and 
  navigator, 
  companion 
  of 
  Peary 
  upon 
  

   his 
  triumphant 
  expedition, 
  brushed 
  away 
  

   tears 
  as 
  speaker 
  after 
  speaker 
  paid 
  tribute 
  

   to 
  his 
  beloved 
  chief. 
  Another 
  figure 
  of 
  

   interest 
  was 
  Matt 
  Henson, 
  Peary's 
  faith- 
  

   ful 
  aid, 
  the 
  only 
  man 
  beside 
  his 
  leader 
  

   and 
  four 
  Eskimos 
  who 
  has 
  stood 
  at 
  the 
  

   apex 
  of 
  the 
  world. 
  

  

  THE 
  ADDRESS 
  OF 
  GILBERT 
  GROSVENOR, 
  

   PRESIDENT 
  OP 
  THE 
  SOCIETY 
  

  

  Dr. 
  Grosvenor, 
  in 
  his 
  introductory 
  ad- 
  

   dress 
  as 
  presiding 
  officer, 
  said 
  : 
  

  

  "On 
  a 
  late 
  summer 
  day 
  in 
  1891, 
  Peary's 
  

   ship, 
  the 
  Kite, 
  was 
  working 
  its 
  way 
  

   through 
  the 
  ice-fields 
  ofT 
  the 
  Greenland 
  

   coast, 
  seeking 
  an 
  anchorage, 
  when 
  a 
  cake 
  

   of 
  ice 
  became 
  wedged 
  against 
  the 
  rudder, 
  

   causing 
  the 
  wheel 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  ship 
  suddenly 
  

   to 
  reverse 
  and 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  spokes 
  to 
  pin 
  

   Peary 
  against 
  the 
  casement. 
  Before 
  he 
  

   could 
  be 
  released 
  both 
  bones 
  in 
  his 
  left 
  

   leg 
  had 
  snapped. 
  

  

  "What 
  should 
  he 
  do 
  after 
  this 
  distress- 
  

   ing 
  accident? 
  Return 
  to 
  Washington, 
  as 
  

   his 
  companions 
  urged 
  him, 
  and 
  come 
  

   back 
  to 
  Greenland 
  later, 
  when 
  his 
  badly 
  

   broken 
  limb 
  had 
  healed? 
  'No,' 
  said 
  

   Peary, 
  'my 
  friends 
  have 
  invested 
  their 
  

   money 
  in 
  my 
  enterprise 
  and 
  I 
  must 
  make 
  

   good 
  to 
  them 
  now.' 
  

  

  "So 
  the 
  surgeon 
  strapped 
  the 
  leg 
  to 
  a 
  

   board, 
  and 
  on 
  an 
  improvised 
  stretcher 
  

   he 
  was 
  carried 
  ashore 
  and 
  deposited 
  on 
  

   that 
  bleak, 
  desolate 
  land, 
  while 
  by 
  his 
  

   command 
  the 
  ship 
  and 
  surgeon 
  hurried 
  

   home 
  lest 
  the 
  entire 
  party 
  should 
  be 
  

   caught 
  in 
  the 
  ice 
  unprovisioned 
  for 
  the 
  

   long 
  winter. 
  

  

  "Thus, 
  strapped 
  to 
  a 
  board, 
  Peary 
  be- 
  

   gan 
  his 
  first 
  campaign 
  in 
  the 
  Arctic. 
  

  

  "Many 
  in 
  this 
  notable 
  gathering 
  have 
  

   heard 
  Peary 
  declare, 
  as 
  he 
  loved 
  to 
  so 
  

   often, 
  that 
  'Mrs. 
  Peary 
  always 
  seemed 
  to 
  

   foresee 
  whether 
  she 
  could 
  help 
  most 
  by 
  

   going 
  north 
  with 
  the 
  expedition 
  or 
  by 
  

   staying 
  behind 
  to 
  speed 
  the 
  auxiliary 
  

   parties.' 
  

  

  "Fortunately 
  for 
  American 
  history, 
  her 
  

   intuition 
  had 
  impelled 
  her 
  to 
  accompany 
  

   her 
  husband 
  on 
  this, 
  his 
  first 
  expedition, 
  

   in 
  spite 
  of 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  no 
  white 
  woman 
  

   had 
  previously 
  wintered 
  with 
  an 
  Arctic 
  

   party. 
  She 
  nursed 
  him 
  so 
  skillfully 
  that 
  

  

  at 
  the 
  Christmas 
  games 
  arranged 
  for 
  the 
  

   Eskimo 
  he 
  outraced 
  on 
  snowshoes 
  not 
  

   only 
  all 
  the 
  natives, 
  but 
  also 
  his 
  own 
  men. 
  

   "The 
  following 
  spring 
  he 
  ascended 
  to 
  the 
  

   summit 
  oi 
  the 
  great 
  ice-cap 
  which 
  covers 
  

   the 
  interior 
  of 
  Greenland, 
  5,000 
  to 
  8,000 
  

   feet 
  in 
  elevation, 
  and 
  sped 
  northward 
  for 
  

   500 
  miles 
  through 
  a 
  region 
  where 
  the 
  foot 
  

   of 
  man 
  had 
  never 
  trod 
  before, 
  in 
  tem- 
  

   peratures 
  ranging 
  from 
  io° 
  to 
  50 
  ° 
  below 
  

   zero. 
  This 
  sledding 
  journey 
  of 
  1,300 
  

   miles 
  round 
  trip, 
  made 
  in 
  less 
  than 
  ten 
  

   months 
  after 
  his 
  leg 
  was 
  broken, 
  in 
  bold- 
  

   ness 
  of 
  conception 
  and 
  brilliancy 
  of 
  re- 
  

   sults 
  is 
  unsurpassed 
  in 
  Arctic 
  history. 
  

  

  EXTRAORDINARY 
  COURAGE 
  MATCHED 
  BY 
  

   REMARKABLE 
  INTELLECT 
  

  

  "Peary's 
  extraordinary 
  courage 
  was 
  

   matched 
  by 
  an 
  equally 
  remarkable 
  intel- 
  

   lect. 
  He 
  possessed 
  the 
  resourcefulness 
  

   and 
  patience 
  in 
  detail 
  of 
  the 
  inventor, 
  

   the 
  precision 
  of 
  an 
  engineer, 
  the 
  general- 
  

   ship 
  of 
  a 
  great 
  commander. 
  Every 
  cam- 
  

   paign 
  was 
  planned 
  with 
  such 
  minute 
  care 
  

   that 
  though 
  he 
  took 
  hundreds 
  of 
  men 
  

   north 
  with 
  him, 
  he 
  brought 
  them 
  all 
  back 
  

   safely, 
  with 
  the 
  exception 
  of 
  two 
  who 
  lost 
  

   their 
  lives 
  in 
  accidents 
  for 
  which 
  the 
  

   leader 
  was 
  in 
  no 
  wise 
  responsible. 
  

  

  "It 
  was 
  inevitable 
  that 
  the 
  prize 
  for 
  

   which 
  all 
  nations 
  had 
  striven 
  for 
  many 
  

   centuries 
  should 
  be 
  won 
  by 
  such 
  a 
  com- 
  

   bination 
  of 
  pluck 
  and 
  brains. 
  

  

  "We 
  are 
  proud 
  to 
  recall 
  that 
  Peary 
  was 
  

   a 
  member 
  of 
  the 
  National 
  Geographic 
  

   Society 
  from 
  its 
  organization, 
  in 
  1888. 
  

   His 
  first 
  address 
  to 
  The 
  Society, 
  de- 
  

   scribing 
  a 
  journey 
  of 
  exploration 
  through 
  

   Nicaragua, 
  was 
  given 
  in 
  that 
  year 
  and 
  

   published 
  in 
  the 
  first 
  volume 
  of 
  The 
  

   Society's 
  proceedings. 
  On 
  his 
  return 
  

   from 
  the 
  north, 
  his 
  first 
  public 
  address 
  

   was 
  always 
  made 
  before 
  our 
  Society. 
  

   His 
  last 
  public 
  appearance 
  was 
  on 
  the 
  

   platform 
  of 
  the 
  National 
  Geographic 
  

   Society, 
  when 
  he 
  came 
  to 
  the 
  meeting, 
  in 
  

   spite 
  of 
  his 
  doctor's 
  orders, 
  to 
  present 
  

   Stefansson 
  in 
  1919, 
  just 
  returned 
  from 
  

   six 
  years 
  in 
  the 
  north 
  ; 
  his 
  last 
  article 
  was 
  

   written 
  for 
  The 
  Society's 
  Magazine, 
  and 
  

   the 
  last 
  photograph 
  of 
  him 
  was 
  taken 
  on 
  

   the 
  steps 
  of 
  The 
  Society's 
  buildings. 
  

  

  "He 
  was 
  ever 
  an 
  ardent 
  supporter 
  of 
  

   The 
  Society's 
  ambition 
  to 
  enlist 
  the 
  in- 
  

   terest 
  of 
  every 
  man 
  and 
  woman 
  in 
  scien- 
  

   tific 
  work 
  and 
  of 
  The 
  Society's 
  earnest 
  

  

  