harold-noice-01-02-15-002

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Vice-President of the Stefansson Company, who was here also, and
I convinced Mr. Taylor of the absolute necessity for a relief
expedition which should be equipped for serious relief work to
leave Nome the following summer with instructions to get to
Wrangel Island at all hazards. And I advised Mr. Taylor to
engage Captain Bernard and his ship for the trip and therefore
avoid the danger of not being able to get another ship later on
when time would be an element of importance, and when, perhaps,
money would be difficult to get. Mr. Taylor agreed with me
absolutely and wired Mr. Stefansson, who was then on a lecture
tour, urging him to grant authority to engage Bernard. But Mr.
Stefansson wired back that it was too early to make definite
plans and that he was expecting the Canadian Government to finance
theexpedition, so the thing fell through and Bernard left New
York.

Matters dragged on until spring and still no definite
plans had been made for the relief expedition. I had been unable
to finance my Coronation Gulf project and had agreed to take
command of the relief expedition. Mr. Stefansson tried to get
money from the Canadian Parliament, then went to England to try
his luck there. Not having received any word from Stefansson
I began to get alarmed and at last wired Mr: Taylor informing
him that if the company wanted me to take charge of the expedition
they would have to give me time enough to get to the Pacific Coast