stefansson-wrangel-09-15-095

Wrangel

Permanent Address American Geographical Society Broadway at 156th Street, New York, N.Y.

Sydney Australia, June 2, 1924.

Foreign Office Downing Street, Whitehall, London.

Sirs: During the summer of 1923 I laid before you the case of Wrangell Island. That information is already in your files or available in the files of the Colonial, Admirality, and Air Ministers.

As shown by the investigations of the Royal Geographical Society (see attached copy of their impartial summary of the case) and as shown equally, I believe, by the investigatons of the technical men of your Department, Great Britain has a clear legal claim to Wrangell Island, the claim of the United States being second and that of Russian weak in comparison with theirs. No other countries, I believe, have any claims.

I want to call your attention to the necessity for some action on the part of the Empire since my work and that of the Stefansson Arctic Exploration and Development Company must come to an end. As explained to you last summer, I have already spent all the money I had and all I could borrow and am physically unable to go ahead. We have in the twelve Eskimos now under command of a white man, Charles Wells. I do not have and cannot find the money to send a supply ship to communicate with them. I shall, therefore, be forced to try to sell our interests in Wrangell Island (only the furs with these people may catch) to an American company. I dislike withdrawing by no other course is open. I am, of course, anxious to withdraw in favor of the United States if I do withdraw since that country has the second best claim, and since through a residence of forty years in their territories I have their interest at heart almost as much as ours.

When the lives of the four men on Wrangell Island were considered to be in danger in 1923, Mr. Griffith Brewer, of 33 Chancery Land, London, made me a loan of more than 2,000 pounds sterling, which enabled us to send a ship. I am in Australia but he is presumably in London and within easy reach. He is well

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informed on most of our affairs and can probably give you any information you may want.

The only action that seems to me to be absolutely necessary at the moment is a declaration that Great Britain means to stand on her rights and is willing to submit the case to arbitration by the League of Nations or some other court if some other nation believes itself to have a valid claim to the island.

As stated last summer, I would hope that the Government might some time return both to us who are living and to the relatives of those who are dead the money we have actually put into the Wrangell Island enterprise. However, the Government's doing this is no condition laid down by us nor any essential part of what ought to be done now.

Wrangle

Permanent Address American Geographical Society, Broadway at 156th Street, New York, N.Y.

Sydney Australia, June 2, 1924.

Honourable Charles Stewart, Minister of the Interior, Ottawa, Ontario.

Sir:

When I was in Ottawa in the latter part of March you asked me to write you what I thought the Government ought to do about Wrangell Island. I had so often reiterated what I thought they should do that (although I said to you offhand that I would) I did not at first see what I could [no w] write. I desired also to have a conference with several people, notably my associate, Mr. A. J. T. Taylor of the Combustion Engineering Corporation, Bank of Hamilton Building, Toronto, and Sir Edmund/Walker who was one of the few Canadian contributors to the Wrangell Island enterprise. I went to Toronto immediately after seeing you and arrived there in the morning after Sir Edmund had died. This unsettled me very much, partly as a matter of personal feeling and partly because his advice was no longer available. I then wrote you saying that the promised statement would be somewhat delayed.

At this stage the newspapers carried the announcement that you had said in Paliamont that Canada would make no claim for Wrangell Island. The despatches which I saw at the time did not carry the information (which I have learned only from the press report sent from Ottawa to England), that you had added that Great Britain might put in a claim for the island.

Since no conversation is possible and correspondance very slow between Canada and Australia, I am submitting herewith several alternative proposals to what Canada might do.

Suggestions as to What Might be Done About Wrangell Island.

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With regard to the ownership of Wrangell Island, either the Canadian Government or the British Government should announce that on the basis of discovery by Captain Kellett of the Royal Navy in 1849, and on the basis of exploration and occupation at various subsequent times and the raising of the Canadian flag by order of the Canadian Government on my expedition of 1913-1918 and without such orders in 1921, the Empire of Canada have acquired rights in Wrangell Island upon which they desire to stand but which they are perfectly ready to submit to an international court, to the League of Nations, or to a separate board of arbitration in case other nations (the United States or Russia) consider that they have claims to the island.

With regard to recompense in money to those concerned in the Wrangell Island Expedition begun in 1921 and still going on, through a comittee or otherwise the Government of Canada might investigate whether the men who put money into the Wrangell Island enterprise and the men who died there were actuated mainly by motives of public spirit. If the finding should be affirmative, the Government of Canada, or the Government of Great Britain on a recommendation from Canada, might act upon the proposal which I have more than once made to the Government of Canada - that the money actually put in by people still living, by Sir Edmund Walker and by the men who died on Wrangell Island, should be returned either without interest or with bank interest from the time the money was actually put in. There should also be returned the 2,250 pounds sterling loaned by Mr. Griffith Brewer, 33 Chancery Lane, London, for the voyage of the ship Donaldson which brought back the news of the tragedy. From this would be deducted the money actually contributed towards the Wrangell Island relief through public subscriptions in England the summer of 1923. I think this amount was a little over 1,200 pounds. The exact amounts involved could be ascertained by having expert accountants examine the books and records of the company.

With regard to the future, no expenditure on the part of the Government is necessary (as I have frequently point out) if they will give to some commercial company a lease of theisland. The company would then become responsible for the continued occupation, which in turn would insure the continuation of British rights.

There are on the island now twelve Eskimo employed by

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the Stefansson Arctic Exploration and Development Company. They are under command of a white man, Charles Wells. These people have no wage arrangements with us but arethere on a (a claim for back pay. "grub staking" basis, the ordinary arrangement for trappers in arctic Canada and arctic Alaska. They were landed there by our company, the supplies were furnished by us and we are expected to bring them out. Half the furs they catch belong to them and half belong to the company. This is the sort of arrangement whichcould be carried on indefinitely and profitably by a company having a charter of the island.

Because I had no more money and knew of no place where I could borrow any, I made just before sailing to Australia a proposal to the Lomen Reindeer and Trading Corporation of 17 Battery Place, New York (who also have an office in Nome, Alaska), that they either purchase all the interests in Wrangell Island of the Stefansson Arctic Exploration and Development Company for $3,000., or purchase 51 per cent. of those interests for $1,500. I did this to try to get someone to undertake sending a ship to Wrangell Island the summer 1924. It was also done with a view to the apparent possibility that the present government of Great Britain might desire not to retain Wrangell Island within the Empire. In that case the United States would be the next best legal claimant, and it would suit myself and my associates much better if the island should go to the United States, which really has a legal claim, than for it to go to Russia which has/no sound claim. If either Great Britain or Canada decides to go on with the occupation the sale of our company's property rights in Wrangell Island will have no effect upon British ownership, especially if British action affirming ownership is taken this summer.

I am attaching a second proposal which I do not really favor but which might be considered should this one not be taken up.