DR. COOK'S ARCTIC STORY.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 698, 24 December 1909, Page 5

DR. COOK'S ARCTIC STORY.

IS IT AN HALLUCINATION? (By Telegraph—Presß Aeacclatlon-OopyrlghU New York, December 22. Some' of the friends of Dr. Cook—whose North Polar pretensions have been minimised by the report of the Danish Committee—declare him to be an object for sympathy. Th'oy believe him to be the victim of an hallucination. ' : ■ 1

COOK'S STRUGGLE FOR EDUCATION. The following story of Dr. Cook's life is taken from a London paper:—"His father was a German, a Dr. Koch, ! who emigrated to the United' States wheil a young man and practised in a rural district in tho State of New York. He changed his name to 'Cook,' doing what: many thousand others have dono when they found, that an Anglo-Saxon .'nanifl wss >» advantage in Americiy,

Of a Jewish Family.; \ It Eccmß fairly certain that Dr. Koch was a Jew—a member- of a well-known family of Frankfort-on-Maih. This . information was given to the 'Jewish World' newspaper, and we understand that it came from: a quite trustworthy source. Dr. Xocli, or Cook, died when his Son, the explorer, was six years old, leaving a tiny farm for the support of a widpw and four children. -. Obviously they must have had a hard'time, and it seems that it was a very hard time.' At length thoy moved to Brooklyn, part of the great city of Neiv York. ■ "Here yoiinß Cook's, fortunes were at their lowest ebl). He had to earn money, and sold vegetables in the market. .In what little spare time he had he* read. He saved'all that ho oould, and with his savings started a milk business.. He himself delivered. the milk,to his customers,. beginning work at, one o'clock ■ in tho morning, and working until soven.

Hard-won Diploma. "Then,, at nine o'clock, ho wont to Columbia University, attending until four • iii the afternoon, when he returned to Brooklyn and read until nighttime.' Think'of tho lite! Tho tiresome journeys from Brooklyn to tho university and back alono -took a considerable slice-out of each day, and yet the boy was up an hour, after 'midnight in order 'to obtain money for his education. Only on' Saturdays and- Sundays, when there were no classes, did he get"tin opportunity for proper sleep." . , ; "'l'his life went on for six years, ana then tho' young man. received his physician's diploma. This was in -1891,' and immediately .afterwards Dr.; Cook succeeded in obtaining; an appointment as surgeon with the Peary Expedition , to North Greenland, being chosen out of tho .entire Columbia graduating' class.' When he returned to America he practised as a physician in Brooklyn for six years, and then, when he heard a rumour that a sufgeon was wanted on the Belgian Antarctic -Expedition ho cabled to the promoters, offering.■ himsolf as a volunteer. His offer was accepted by. cable, and ho joined tho, expedition at Itio de Janeiro. Ever sinco then he ■ seems to have. been, engaged in one hazardous' exploit after ' another," ;

Peary and Cook. 1 ' The same authority states "that Peary's book of the expedition which Dr. Cook accompanied as surgeon contains maijy references to Dr. Cook, : to: whom were' given- some 1 ' of-tho most arduous .duties connected, with' the expedition. The author, says •in Volumo I: •' "To Dr. Cook's caro may be attributed the almost. eompleto exemption of, tho party from even the mildest indispositions, and personally. I owe much to his .professional skill and unruffled patience', and coolness in an emergency" , .v..