stefansson-wrangel-09-19-036-001

COPY OF LETTER FROM MR. J. I. KNIGHT
McMinnville, Oregon.

Sept.5, 1923.

Mr. V. Stefansson,
New York,
L o n d o n.

Dear Mr. Stefansson,

The terrible news from Wrangle Island seem almost unbe-
lievable and inconceivable that such a terrible ending should
be the final outcome of this undertaking.

Of course, you can not be expected to understand all that
it means to us and yet, I know that it means, to you, in a
different sense almost more than I can understand.

I can not resist the temptation to say to you now, what
I have felt for a year and that is that,

Had Capt. Bernard have shown half the sense he was given
credit for having, he should have, with an HONEST effort,
reached Wrangle Island last year.

Any school child in the fourth grade could tell by looking
at the map that, with the long line of Siberian coast for a
buffer for all the ice coming down from the north end of the
world, it would be impossible for him to hug the Siberian coast
and make the island but, by doing as the Silver Wave did and as
Noice did, make the parallel of the Island north and then come
in behind the great mass of ice, he could have made the destina-
tion.

However, what can not be helped, need not be agitated and,
we have lost our boys through this inefficiency and WE must endure
it.

All McMinnville is now ready for an ingidnant meeting over
the fact that, not a word has been heard from Noice by us and,
the fact that, he has our boy's body at Nome and we have not been
advised and nothing has ever reached you except what it was
impossible for him to conceal for the sake of the price per col-
umn inch for himself. He could not conceal the fact from the
Associated Press reporters that, the Donaldson was in the harbor
and had returned from her effort to reach Wrangle Island and,
then, the further fact that, the Life Patrol sent a boat out and
brought the Eskimo woman and the Body of Lorne ashore and, the
rest of the news which they have been able to get, was doubtless
gleaned from the crew, and, it would have been concealed even
from you and I had this been possible for Noice to have done.